THE  DUSANTES 


THE  DUSANTES 


A  SEQUEL  TO  "THE  CASTING  AWAY  OF  MRS.  LECKS 
AND  MRS.  ALESHINE" 


BY 


FRANK  R.  STOCKTON 


NEW-YORK 
THE   CENTURY   CO. 


c 


COPYRIGHT,  1888,  BY  FRANK  R.  STOCKTON. 

ALL  RIGHTS  RESERVED. 


THE  DE  VINNB  PRESS. 


THE  DUSANTES 

A  SEQUEL  TO  "  THE  CASTING  AWAY  OP  MRS.  LECKS 
AND  MRS.  ALESHINE  n 


PART  I 

WHEN  the  little  party,  consisting  of  Mrs. 
Leeks  and  Mrs.  Aleshine,  Mr.  Enderton, 
my  newly  made  wife,  and  myself,  with  the  red- 
bearded  coxswain  and  the  two  sailor  men,  bade 
farewell  to  that  island  in  the  Pacific  where  so 
many  happy  hours  had  been  passed,  where  such 
pleasant  friendships  had  been  formed,  and  where 
I  had  met  my  Ruth  and  made  her  my  wife,  we 
rowed  away  with  a  bright  sky  over  our  heads,  a 
pleasant  wind  behind  us,  and  a  smooth  sea  be 
neath  us.  The  long-boat  was  comfortable  and 
well  appointed,  and  there  was  even  room  enough 
in  it  for  Mr.  Enderton  to  stretch  himself  out  and 
take  a  noonday  nap.  We  gave  him  every  advan 
tage  of  this  kind,  for  we  had  found  by  experience 


269277 


8  "  The  Dus antes. 

that  our  party  was  happiest  when  my  father-in-law 
was  best  contented. 

Early  in  the  forenoon  the  coxswain  rigged  a 
small  sail  in  the  bow  of  the  boat,  and  with  this  aid 
to  our  steady  and  systematic  work  at  the  oars  we 
reached,  just  before  nightfall,  the  large  island 
whither  we  were  bound,  and  to  which,  by  means 
of  the  coxswain's  pocket-compass,  we  had  steered 
a  direct  course.  Our  arrival  on  this  island,  which 
was  inhabited  by  some  white  traders  and  a 
moderate  population  of  natives,  occasioned  great 
surprise,  for  when  the  boats  containing  the  crew 
and  passengers  of  our  unfortunate  steamer  had 
reached  the  island,  it  was  found  that  Mrs.  Leeks, 
Mrs.  Aleshine,  and  myself  were  missing.  There 
were  many  suppositions  as  to  our  fate.  Some 
persons  thought  we  had  been  afraid  to  leave  the 
steamer,  and,  having  secreted  ourselves  on  board, 
had  gone  down  with  her.  Others  conjectured 
that  in  the  darkness  we  had  fallen  overboard, 
either  from  the  steamer  or  from  one  of  the  boats ; 
and  there  was  even  a  surmise  that  we  might  have 
embarked  in  the  leaky  small  boat  —  in  which  we 
really  did  leave  the  steamer  —  and  so  had  been 
lost.  At  any  rate,  we  had  disappeared,  and  our 
loss  was  a  good  deal  talked  about,  and,  in  a 
manner,  mourned.  In  less  than  a  week  after  their 


The  Dusantes.  9 

arrival  the  people  from  the  steamer  had  been  taken 
on  board  a  sailing  vessel  and  carried  westward  to 
their  destination. 

We,  however,  were  not  so  fortunate,  for  we  re 
mained  on  this  island  for  more  than  a  month. 
During  this  time  but  one  ship  touched  there,  and 
she  was  western  bound  and  of  no  use  to  us,  for 
we  had  determined  to  return  to  America.  Mrs. 
Leeks  and  Mrs.  Aleshine  had  given  up  their  jour 
ney  to  Japan,  and  were  anxious  to  reach  once 
more  their  country  homes,  while  my  dear  Ruth 
and  I  were  filled  with  a  desire  to  found  a  home  on 
some  pleasant  portion  of  the  Atlantic  seaboard. 
What  Mr.  Enderton  intended  to  do  we  did  not 
know.  He  was  on  his  way  to  the  United  States 
when  he  left  the  leaking  ship  on  which  he  and  his 
daughter  were  passengers,  and  his  intentions  re 
garding  his  journey  did  not  appear  to  have  been 
altered  by  his  mishaps. 

By  the  western-bound  vessel,  however,  Mrs.  Ale- 
shine  sent  a  letter  to  her  son. 

Our  life  on  this  island  was  monotonous,  and  to 
the  majority  of  the  party  uninteresting ;  but  as  it 
was  the  scene  of  our  honeymoon,  Mrs.  Craig  and 
I  will  always  look  back  to  it  with  the  most  pleas 
urable  recollections.  We  were  comfortably  lodged 
in  a  house  belonging  to  one  of  the  traders,  and 


io  The  Dusantes. 

although  Mrs.  Leeks  and  Mrs.  Aleshine  had  no 
household  duties  to  occupy  their  time,  they  man 
aged  to  supply  themselves  with  knitting  materials 
from  the  stores  on  the  island,  and  filled  up  their 
hours  of  waiting  with  chatty  industry.  The  pipes 
of  our  sailor  friends  were  always  well  filled,  while 
the  sands  of  the  island  were  warm  and  pleasant 
for  their  backs,  and  it  was  only  Mr.  Enderton  who 
showed  any  signs  of  impatient  repining  at  our 
enforced  stay.  He  growled,  he  grumbled,  and  he 
inveighed  against  the  criminal  neglect  of  steam 
ship  companies  and  the  owners  of  sailing  craft  in 
not  making  it  compulsory  in  every  one  of  their 
vessels  to  stop  on  every  voyage  at  this  island, 
where,  at  any  time,  intelligent  and  important  per 
sonages  might  be  stranded. 

At  last,  however,  we  were  taken  off  by  a  three- 
masted  schooner  bound  for  San  Francisco,  at  which 
city  we  arrived  in  due  time  and  in  good  health  and 
condition. 

We  did  not  remain  long  in  this  city,  but  soon 
started  on  our  way  across  the  continent,  leaving 
behind  us  our  three  sailor  companions,  who  in 
tended  to  ship  from  this  port  as  soon  as  an  advan 
tageous  opportunity  offered  itself.  These  men 
heard  no  news  of  their  vessel,  although  they  felt 
quite  sure  that  she  had  reached  Honolulu,  where 


The  Dmantes.  1 1 

she  had  probably  been  condemned  and  the  crew 
scattered.  As  some  baggage  belonging  to  my  wife 
and  my  father-in-law  had  been  left  on  board  this 
vessel,  I  had  hopes  that  Mr.  Enderton  would  re 
main  in  San  Francisco  and  order  it  forwarded  to 
him  there  j  or  that  he  would  even  take  a  trip  to 
Honolulu  to  attend  to  the  matter  personally.  But 
in  this  I  was  disappointed.  He  seemed  to  take 
very  little  interest  in  his  missing  trunks,  and 
wished  only  to  press  on  to  the  East.  I  wrote  to 
Honololu,  desiring  the  necessary  steps  to  be  taken 
to  forward  the  baggage  in  case  it  had  arrived 
there;  and  soon  afterwards  our  party  of  five 
started  eastward. 

It  was  now  autumn,  but,  although  we  desired  to 
reach  the  end  of  our  journey  before  winter  set 
in,  we  felt  that  we  had  time  enough  to  visit  some 
of  the  natural  wonders  of  the  California  country 
before  taking  up  our  direct  course  to  the  East. 
Therefore,  in  spite  of  some  petulant  remon 
strances  on  the  part  of  Mr.  Enderton,  we  made 
several  trips  to  points  of  interest. 

From  the  last  of  these  excursions  we  set  out  in  a 
stage-coach,  of  which  we  were  the  only  occupants, 
towards  a  point  on  the  railroad  where  we  expected 
to  take  a  train.  On  the  way  we  stopped  to  change 
horses  at  a  small  stage  station  at  the  foot  of  a 


12  The  Dusantcs. 

range  of  mountains ;  and  when  I  descended  from 
the  coach  I  found  the  driver  and  some  of  the  men 
at  the  station  discussing  the  subject  of  our  route. 
It  appeared  that  there  were  two  roads,  one  of 
which  gradually  ascended  the  mountain  for  several 
miles,  and  then  descended  to  the  level  of  the  rail 
road,  by  the  side  of  which  it  ran  until  it  reached 
the  station  where  we  wished  to  take  the  train. 
The  other  road  pursued  its  way  along  a  valley  or 
notch  in  the  mountain  for  a  considerable  distance, 
and  then,  by  a  short  but  somewhat  steep  ascend 
ing  grade,  joined  the  upper  road. 

It  was  growing  quite  cold,  and  the  sky  and  the 
wind  indicated  that  bad  weather  might  be  ex 
pected  ;  and  as  the  upper  road  was  considered  the 
better  one  at  such  a  time,  our  driver  concluded  to 
take  it.  Six  horses,  instead  of  four,  were  now  at 
tached  to  our  stage,  and  as  two  of  these  animals 
were  young  and  unruly  and  promised  to  be  un 
usually  difficult  to  drive  in  the  ordinary  way,  our 
driver  concluded  to  ride  one  of  the  wheel  horses, 
postilion  fashion,  and  to  put  a  boy  on  one  of  the 
leaders.  Mr.  Enderton  was  very  much  afraid  of 
horses,  and  objected  strongly  to  the  young  animals 
in  our  new  team.  But  there  were  no  others  to 
take  their  places,  and  his  protests  were  dis 
regarded. 


The  Dusantcs.  13 

My  wife  and  I  occupied  a  back  seat,  having 
been  ordered  to  take  this  comfortable  position  by 
Mrs.  Leeks  and  Mrs.  Aleshine,  who  had  consti 
tuted  themselves  a  board  of  instruction  and 
admonition  to  Mrs.  Craig,  and,  incidentally,  to 
myself.  They  fancied  that  my  wife's  health  was 
not  vigorous  and  that  she  needed  coddling; 
and  if  she  had  had  two  mothers  she  could  not 
have  been  more  tenderly  cared  for  than  by 
these  good  women.  They  sat  upon  the  middle 
seat  with  their  faces  towards  the  horses,  while 
Mr.  Enderton  had  the  front  seat  all  to  himself. 
He  was,  however,  so  nervous  and  fidgety,  con 
tinually  twisting  himself  about,  endeavoring  to 
get  a  view  of  the  horses  or  of  the  bad  places  on 
the  road,  that  Mrs.  Leeks  and  Mrs.  Aleshine 
found  that  a  position  facing  him  and  in  close 
juxtaposition  was  entirely  too  uncomfortable  j 
and  consequently,  the  back  of  their  seat  being 
adjustable,  they  turned  themselves  about  and 
faced  us. 

The  ascent  of  the  mountain  was  slow  and  tedi 
ous,  and  it  was  late  in  the  afternoon  when  we 
reached  the  highest  point  in  our  route,  from  which 
the  road  descended  for  some  eight  miles  to  the 
level  of  the  railroad.  Now  our  pace  became  rapid, 
and  Mr.  Enderton  grew  wildly  excited.  He  threw 
2 


14  The  Dmantes. 

open  the  window  and  shouted  to  the  driver  to  go 
more  slowly,  but  Mrs.  Leeks  seized  him  by  the  coat 
and  jerked  him  back  on  his  seat  before  he  could 
get  any  answer  to  his  appeals. 

"  If  you  want  your  daughter  to  ketch  her  death 
o7  cold  you  '11  keep  that  window  open  ! w  As  she 
said  this,  she  leaned  back  and  pulled  the  win 
dow  down  with  her  own  strong  right  arm.  "I 
guess  the  driver  knows  what  he  is  about/7  she 
continued,  "  this  not  bein7  the  first  time  he  7s  gone 
over  the  road.77 

"  Am  I  to  understand,  madam,"  said  Mr.  Ender- 
ton,  "  that  I  am  not  to  speak  to  my  driver  when 
I  wish  him  to  know  my  will  ?  w 

To  this  question  Mrs.  Leeks  made  no  answer, 
but  sat  up  very  straight  and  stiff,  with  her  back 
square  upon  the  speaker.  For  some  time  she  and 
Mr.  Enderton  had  been  "  out,77  and  she  made  no 
effort  to  conceal  the  fact. 

Mr.  Enderton7s  condition  now  became  pitiable, 
for  our  rapid  speed  and  the  bumping  over  rough 
places  in  the  road  seemed  almost  to  deprive  him 
of  his  wits,  notwithstanding  my  assurance  that 
stage-coaches  were  generally  driven  at  a  rapid  rate 
down  long  inclines.  In  a  short  time,  however,  we 
reached  a  level  spot  in  the  road,  and  the  team  was 
drawn  up  and  stopped.  Mr.  Enderton  popped  out 


The  Dwantes.  75 

in  a  moment,  and  I  also  got  down  to  have  a  talk 
with  the  driver. 

"  These  hosses  won't  do  much  at  holdin'  back," 
he  said,  "and  it  worries  7em  less  to  let  'em  go 
ahead  with  the  wheels  locked.  You  need  n't  be 
afraid.  If  nothin'  breaks,  we  're  all  right." 

Mr.  Enderton  seemed  endeavoring  to  satisfy 
himself  that  everything  about  the  running-gear 
of  the  coach  was  in  a  safe  condition.  He  examined 
the  wheels,  the  axles,  and  the  whiffletrees,  much 
to  the  amusement  of  the  driver,  who  remarked  to 
me  that  the  old  chap  probably  knew  as  much  now 
as  he  did  before.  I  was  rather  surprised  that  my 
father-in-law  subjected  the  driver  to  no  further 
condemnation.  On  the  contrary,  he  said  nothing 
except  that  for  the  rest  of  this  down-hill  drive  he 
should  take  his  place  on  the  driver's  unoccupied 
seat.  Nobody  offered  any  objection  to  this,  and 
up  he  climbed. 

When  we  started  again  Euth  seemed  disturbed 
that  her  father  should  be  in  such  an  exposed  po 
sition,  but  I  assured  her  that  he  would  be  perfectly 
safe,  and  would  be  much  better  satisfied  at  being 
able  to  see  for  himself  what  was  going  on. 

We  now  began  to  go  down-hill  again  at  a  rate 
as  rapid  as  before.  Our  speed,  however,  was  not 
equal.  Sometimes  it  would  slacken  a  little  where 


1 6  The  D  its  antes. 

the  road  was  heavy  or  more  upon  a  level,  and  then 
we  would  go  jolting  and  rattling  over  some  long 
downward  stretch.  After  a  particularly  unpleas 
ant  descent  of  this  kind  the  coach  seemed  sud 
denly  to  change  its  direction,  and  with  a  twist  and 
an  uplifting  of  one  side  it  bumped  heavily  against 
something  and  stopped.  I  heard  a  great  shout 
outside,  and  from  a  window  which  now  com 
manded  a  view  of  the  road  I  saw  our  team  of  six 
horses,  with  the  drivers  pulling  and  tugging  at 
the  two  they  rode,  madly  running  away  at  the  top 
of  their  speed. 

Ruth,  who  had  been  thrown  by  the  shock  into  the 
arms  of  Mrs.  Aleshine,  was  dreadfully  frightened, 
and  screamed  for  her  father.  I  had  been  pitched 
forward  upon  Mrs.  Leeks,  but  I  quickly  recovered 
myself,  and  as  soon  as  I  found  that  none  of  the 
occupants  of  the  coach  had  been  hurt,  I  opened 
the  door  and  sprang  out. 

In  the  middle  of  the  road  stood  Mr.  Enderton, 
entirely  uninjured,  with  a  jubilant  expression  on 
his  face,  and  in  one  hand  a  large  closed  umbrella. 

"  What  has  happened  ?  "  I  exclaimed,  hurrying 
around  to  the  front  of  the  coach,  where  I  saw  that 
the  pole  had  been  broken  off  about  the  middle  of 
its  length. 

"  Nothing  has  happened,  sir,"  replied  Mr.  En- 


The  Dusantes.  ij 

derton.  "  You  cannot  speak  of  a  wise  and  discreet 
act,  determinately  perf  ornued,  as  a  thing  which  has 
happened.  We  have  been  saved,  sir,  from  being 
dashed  to  pieces  behind  that  wild  and  unmanage 
able  team  of  horses  j  and  I  will  add  that  we  have 
been  saved  by  my  forethought  and  prompt  action." 

I  turned  and  looked  at  him  in  astonishment. 
"What  do  you  mean!"  I  said.  "What  could 
you  have  had  to  do  with  this  accident  ? w 

"  Allow  me  to  repeat,"  said  Mr.  Enderton,  "  that 
it  was  not  an  accident.  The  moment  that  we 
began  to  go  down-hill  I  perceived  that  we  were 
in  a  position  of  the  greatest  danger.  The  driver 
was  reckless,  the  boy  incompetent,  and  the  horses 
unmanageable.  As  my  remonstrances  and  coun 
sels  had  no  effect  upon  the  man,  and  as  you  seemed 
to  have  no  desire  to  join  me  in  efforts  to  restrain 
him  to  a  more  prudent  rate  of  speed,  I  determined 
to  take  the  affair  into  my  own  hands.  I  knew  that 
the  first  thing  to  be  done  was  to  rid  ourselves  of 
those  horses.  So  long  as  we  were  connected  with 
them  disaster  was  imminent.  I  knew  exactly  what 
ought  to  be  done.  The  horses  must  be  detached 
from  the  coach.  I  had  read,  sir,  of  inventions 
especially  intended  to  detach  runaway  horses 
from  a  vehicle.  To  all  intents  and  purposes  our 
horses  were  runaways,  or  would  have  become 


1 8  The  Diisantes. 

so  in  a  very  short  time.  I  now  made  it  my  object 
to  free  ourselves  from  those  horses.  I  got  out  at  our 
first  stop  and  thoroughly  examined  the  carriage  at 
tachments.  I  found  that  the  movable  bar  to  which 
the  whiffletrees  were  attached  was  connected  to 
the  vehicle  by  two  straps  and  a  bolt,  the  latter 
having  a  ring  at  the  top  and  an  iron  nut  at  the 
bottom.  While  you  and  that  reckless  driver  were 
talking  together  and  paying  no  attention  to  me, 
the  only  person  in  the  party  who  thoroughly  com 
prehended  our  danger,  I  unbuckled  those  straps, 
and  with  my  strong,  nervous  fingers,  without  the 
aid  of  implements,  I  unscrewed  the  nut  from  the 
bolt.  Then,  sir,  I  took  my  seat  on  the  outside  of 
the  coach  and  felt  that  I  held  our  safety  in  my 
own  hands.  For  a  time  I  allowed  our  vehicle  to 
proceed,  but  when  we  approached  this  long  slope 
which  stretches  before  us,  and  our  horses  showed 
signs  of  increasing  impetuosity,  I  leaned  forward, 
hooked  the  handle  of  my  umbrella  in  the  ring  of 
the  bolt,  and  with  a  mighty  effort  jerked  it  out.  I 
admit  to  you,  sir,  that  I  had  overlooked  the  fact  that 
the  other  horses  were  attached  to  the  end  of  the 
pole,  but  I  have  often  noticed  that  when  we  are 
discreet  in  judgment  and  prompt  in  action  we  are 
also  fortunate.  Thus  was  I  fortunate.  The  hinder- 
most  horses,  suddenly  released,  rushed  upon  those 


The  Ditsantes.  19 

in  front  of  them,  and,  in  a  manner,  jumbled  up 
the  whole  team,  which  seemed  to  throw  the  ani 
mals  into  such  terror  that  they  dashed  to  one 
side  and  snapped  off  the  pole,  after  which  they 
went  madly  tearing  down  the  road,  entirely  beyond 
the  control  of  the  two  riders.  Our  coach  turned 
and  ran  into  the  side  of  the  road  with  but  a  mod 
erate  concussion,  and  as  I  looked  at  those  flying 
steeds,  with  their  riders  vainly  endeavoring  to 
restrain  them,  I  could  not,  sir,  keep  down  an 
emotion  of  pride  that  I  had  been  instrumental  in 
freeing  myself,  my  daughter,  and  my  traveling 
companions  from  their  dangerous  proximity." 

The  speaker  ceased,  a  smile  of  conscious  merit 
upon  his  face.  For  the  moment  I  could  not  say  a 
word  to  him,  I  was  so  angry.  But  had  I  been  able 
to  say  or  do  anything  to  indicate  the  wild  indig 
nation  that  filled  my  brain,  I  should  have  had  no 
opportunity,  for  Mrs.  Leeks  stepped  up  to  me  and 
took  me  by  the  arm.  Her  face  was  very  stern,  and 
her  expression  gave  one  the  idea  of  the  rigidity 
of  Bessemer  steel. 

"  I  Ve  heard  what  has  been  said,"  she  remarked, 
"and  I  wish  to  talk  to  this  man.  Your  wife  is 
over  there  with  Mrs.  Aleshine.  Will  you  please 
take  a  walk  with  her  along  the  road  ?  You  may 
stay  away  for  a  quarter  of  an  hour." 


2o  The  Dus  antes. 

"  Madam,"  said  Mr.  Enderton,  "I  do  not  wish 
to  talk  to  yon." 

"I  did  n't  ask  yon  whether  yon  did  or  not/' 
said  Mrs.  Leeks.  "  Mr.  Craig,  will  yon  please  get 
your  wife  away  as  quick  and  as  far  as  yon 
can?" 

I  took  the  hint,  and,  with  Ruth  on  my  arm, 
walked  rapidly  down  the  road.  She  was  very  glad 
to  go,  for  she  had  been  much  frightened,  and 
wanted  to  be  alone  with  me  to  have  me  explain  to 
her  what  had  occurred.  Mrs.  Leeks,  imagining 
from  the  expression  of  his  countenance  that  Mr. 
Enderton  had,  in  some  way,  been  at  the  bottom  of 
the  trouble,  and  fearing  that  she  should  not  be 
able  to  restrain  her  indignation  when  she  found 
how  he  had  done  it,  had  ordered  Mrs.  Aleshine  to 
keep  Ruth  away  from  her  father.  This  action  had 
increased  the  poor  girl's  anxiety,  and  she  was  glad 
enough  to  have  me  take  her  away  and  tell  her  all 
about  our  accident. 

I  did  tell  her  all  that  had  happened,  speaking 
as  mildly  as  I  could  of  Mr.  Enderton's  conduct. 
Poor  Ruth  burst  into  tears. 

"  I  do  wish,"  she  exclaimed,  "  that  father  would 
travel  by  himself  !  He  is  so  nervous,  and  so  easily 
frightened,  that  I  am  sure  he  would  be  happier 
when  he  could  attend  to  his  safety  in  his  own  way ; 


The  Diisantes.  21 

and  I  know,  too,  that  we  should  be  happier  with 
out  him." 

I  agreed  most  heartily  with  these  sentiments, 
although  I  did  not  deem  it  necessary  to  say  so, 
and  Ruth  now  asked  me  what  I  supposed  would 
become  of  us. 

"  If  nothing  happens  to  the  driver  and  the  boy," 
I  replied,  "  I  suppose  they  will  go  on  until  they  get 
to  the  station  to  which  we  were  bound,  and  there 
they  will  procure  a  pole,  if  such  a  thing  can  be 
found,  or,  perhaps,  get  another  coach,  and  come 
back  for  us.  It  would  be  useless  for  them  to 
return  to  our  coach  in  its  present  condition." 

"And  how  soon  do  you  think  they  will  come 
back  ? "  she  said. 

"Not  for  some  hours,"  I  replied.  "The  driver 
told  me  there  were  no  houses  between  the  place 
where  we  last  stopped  and  the  railroad  station, 
and  I  am  sure  he  will  not  turn  back  until  he 
reaches  a  place  where  he  can  get  either  a  new  pole 
or  another  vehicle." 

Ruth  and  I  walked  to  a  turn  at  the  bottom  of  the 
long  hill  down  which  our  runaway  steeds  had 
sped.  At  this  point  we  had  an  extended  view  of 
the  road  as  it  wound  along  the  mountain-side,  but 
we  could  see  no  signs  of  our  horses  nor  of  any 
living  thing.  I  did  not,  in  fact,  expect  to  see  our 


22  The  Dus antes. 

team,  for  it  would  be  foolish  in  the  driver  to  come 
back  until  he  was  prepared  to  do  something  for 
us,  and  even  if  he  had  succeeded  in  controlling 
the  runaway  beasts,  the  quicker  he  got  down  the 
mountain  the  better. 

By  the  time  we  had  returned  we  had  taken  quite 
a  long  walk,  but  we  were  glad  of  it,  for  the  exer 
cise  tranquilized  us  both.  On  our  way  back  we 
noticed  that  a  road  which  seemed  to  come  up  from 
below  us  joined  the  one  we  were  on  a  short  dis 
tance  from  the  place  where  our  accident  occurred. 
This,  probably,  was  the  lower  road  which  had 
been  spoken  of  when  we  changed  horses. 

We  found  Mr.  Endertou  standing  by  himself. 
His  face  was  of  the  hue  of  wood  ashes,  his  expres 
sion  haggard.  He  reminded  me  of  a  man  who  had 
fallen  from  a  considerable  height,  and  who  had 
been  frightened  and  stupefied  by  the  shock.  I 
comprehended  the  situation  without  difficulty,  and 
felt  quite  sure  that  had  he  had  the  choice  he 
would  have  much  preferred  a  thrashing  to  the 
plain  talk  he  had  heard  from  Mrs.  Leeks. 

"  What  is  the  matter,  father  ?  "  exclaimed  Ruth. 
"  Were  you  hurt  ? '' 

Mr.  Enderton  looked  in  a  dazed  way  at  his 
daughter,  and  it  was  some  moments  before  he 
appeared  to  have  heard  what  she  said.  Then  he 


The  Ditsantes.  23 

answered  abruptly :  "  Hurt  ?  Oh,  no  !  I  am  not 
hurt  in  the  least.  I  was  just  thinking  of  some 
thing.  I  shall  walk  on  to  the  village  or  town, 
whichever  it  is,  to  which  that  man  was  taking  us. 
It  cannot  be  more  than  seven  or  eight  miles  away, 
if  that.  The  road  is  down-hill,  and  I  can  easily 
reach  the  place  before  nightfall.  I  will  then  per 
sonally  attend  to  your  rescue,  and  will  see  that  a 
vehicle  is  immediately  sent  to  you.  There  is  no 
trusting  these  ignorant  drivers.  No,"  he  con 
tinued,  deprecatingly  raising  his  hand,  "  do  not 
attempt  to  dissuade  me.  Your  safety  and  that 
of  others  is  always  my  first  care.  Exertion  is 
nothing." 

Without  further  words,  and  paying  no  atten 
tion  to  the  remonstrances  of  his  daughter,  he 
strode  off  down  the  road. 

I  was  very  glad  to  see  him  go.  At  any  time  his 
presence  was  undesirable  to  me,  and  under  the 
present  circumstances  it  would  be  more  objection 
able  than  ever.  He  was  a  good  walker,  and  there 
was  no  doubt  he  would  easily  reach  the  station, 
where  he  might  possibly  be  of  some  use  to  us. 

Mrs.  Leeks  was  sitting  on  a  stone  by  the  road 
side.  Her  face  was  still  stern  and  rigid,  but  there 
was  an  expression  of  satisfaction  upon  it  which 
had  not  been  there  when  I  left  her.  Ruth  went 


24  The  Dusantcs. 

to  the  coach  to  get  a  shawl,  and  I  said  to  Mrs. 
Leeks : 

"I  suppose  you  had  your  talk  with  Mr.  En- 
derton?" 

"  Talk  !  »  she  replied.  "  I  should  say  so  !  If 
ever  a  man  understands  what  people  think  of  him, 
and  knows  what  he  is,  from  his  crown  to  his  feet, 
inside  and  outside,  soul,  body,  bones,  and  skin, 
and  what  he  may  expect  in  this  world  and  the 
next,  he  knows  it.  I  did  n't  keep  to  what  he  has 
done  for  us  this  day.  I  went  back  to  the  first 
moment  when  he  began  to  growl  at  payin7  his 
honest  board  on  the  island,  and  I  did  n't  let  him 
off  for  a  single  sin  that  he  has  committed  since. 
And  now  I  feel  that  1 7ve  done  my  duty  as  far  as 
he  is  concerned;  and  havin'  got  through  with 
that,  it  7s  time  we  were  lookin'  about  to  see  what 
we  can  do  for  ourselves." 

It  was  indeed  time,  for  the  day  was  drawing  to 
wards  its  close.  For  a  moment  I  had  thought  we 
would  give  Mr.  Enderton  a  good  start,  and  then 
follow  him  down  the  mountain  to  the  station. 
But  a  little  reflection  showed  me  that  this  plan 
would  not  answer.  Ruth  was  not  strong  enough 
to  walk  so  far ;  and  although  Mrs.  Aleshine  had 
plenty  of  vigor,  she  was  too  plump  to  attempt 
such  a  tramp.  Besides,  the  sky  was  so  heavily 


The  Dittanies  25 

overcast  that  it  was  not  safe  to  leave  the  shelter 
of  the  coach. 

As  might  have  been  expected,  Mrs.  Leeks  and 
Mrs.  Aleshine  took  immediate  charge  of  the  per 
sonal  comfort  of  the  party,  and  the  first  thing 
they  did  was  to  make  preparations  for  a  meal. 
Fortunately,  we  had  plenty  of  provisions.  Mrs. 
Aleshine  had  had  charge  of  what  she  called  our 
lunch-baskets,  which  were,  indeed,  much  more 
like  market-baskets  than  anything  else ;  and  hav 
ing  small  faith  in  the  resources  of  roadside  tav 
erns,  and  great  faith  in  the  unlimited  capabilities 
of  Mr.  Enderton  in  the  matter  of  consuming  food 
on  a  journey,  she  had  provided  bounteously  and 
even  extravagantly. 

One  side  of  the  road  was  bordered  by  a  forest, 
and  on  the  ground  was  an  abundance  of  dead 
wood.  I  gathered  a  quantity  of  this,  and  made  a 
fire,  which  was  very  grateful  to  us,  for  the  air  was 
growing  colder  and  colder.  When  we  had  eaten 
a  substantial  cold  supper  and  had  thoroughly 
warmed  ourselves  at  the  fire,  we  got  into  the 
coach  to  sit  there  and  wait  until  relief  should 
come.  We  sat  for  a  long  time ;  all  night,  in  fact. 
We  were  not  uncomfortable,  for  we  each  had  a 
corner  of  the  coach,  and  we  were  plentifully  pro 
vided  with  wraps  and  rugs. 
3 


26  The  Dusantes. 

Contrary  to  their  usual  habit,  Mrs.  Leeks  and 
Mrs.  Aleshine  did  not  talk  much.  When  subjected 
to  the  annoyances  of  an  ordinary  accident,  even  if 
it  should  have  been  the  result  of  carelessness, 
their  disposition  would  have  prompted  them  to 
take  events  as  they  came,  and  to  make  the  best  of 
whatever  might  happen  to  them.  But  this  case 
was  entirely  different.  We  were  stranded  and 
abandoned  on  the  road,  on  the  side  of  a  lonely, 
desolate  mountain,  on  a  cold,  bleak  night  5  and 
all  this  was  the  result  of  what  they  considered 
the  deliberate  and  fiendish  act  of  a  man  who 
was  afraid  of  horses,  and  who  cared  for  no  one 
in  the  world  but  himself.  Their  minds  were  in 
such  a  condition  that  if  they  said  anything  they 
must  vituperate,  and  they  were  so  kindly  disposed 
towards  my  wife,  and  had  such  a  tender  regard 
for  her  feelings,  that  they  would  not,  in  her  pres 
ence,  vituperate  her  father.  So  they  said  very 
little,  and,  nestling  into  their  corners,  were  soon 
asleep. 

After  a  time  Ruth  followed  their  example,  and, 
though  I  was  very  anxiously  watching  out  of  the 
window  for  an  approaching  light,  and  listening 
for  the  sound  of  wheels,  I,  too,  fell  into  a  doze. 
It  must  have  been  ten  or  eleven  o'clock  when  I  was 
awakened  by  some  delicate  but  cold  touches  on 


The  Diisantes.  27 

my  face,  the  nature  of  which,  when  I  first  opened 
my  eyes,  I  could  not  comprehend.  But  I  soon 
understood  what  these  cold  touches  meant.  The 
window  in  the  door  of  the  coach  on  my  side  had 
been  slightly  lowered  from  the  top  to  give  us 
air,  and  through  the  narrow  aperture  the  cold  par 
ticles  had  come  floating  in.  I  looked  through 
the  window.  The  night  was  not  very  dark,  for, 
although  the  sky  was  overcast,  the  moon  was  in 
its  second  quarter,  and  I  could  plainly  see  that 
it  was  snowing,  and  that  the  ground  was  already 
white. 

This  discovery  sent  a  chill  into  my  soul,  for  I 
was  not  unfamiliar  with  snows  in  mountain  re 
gions,  and  knew  well  what  this  might  mean  to  us. 
But  there  was  nothing  that  we  could  now  do,  and 
it  would  be  useless  and  foolish  to  awaken  my  com 
panions  and  distress  them  with  this  new  disaster. 
Besides,  I  thought  our  situation  might  not  be  so 
very  bad  after  all.  It  was  not  yet  winter,  and  the 
snowfall  might  prove  to  be  but  a  light  one.  I 
gently  closed  the  window,  and  made  my  body 
comfortable  in  its  corner,  but  my  mind  continued 
very  uncomfortable  for  I  do  not  know  how  long. 

When  I  awoke,  I  found  that  there  had  been  a 
heavy  fall  of  snow  in  the  night,  and  that  the 
flakes  were  still  coming  down,  thick  and  fast. 


28  The  Dmantcs. 

When  Ruth  first  looked  out  upon  the  scene  she 
was  startled  and  dismayed.  She  was  not  accus 
tomed  to  storms  of  this  kind,  and  the  snow  fright 
ened  her.  Upon  Mrs.  Leeks  and  Mrs.  Aleshine 
the  sight  of  the  storm  produced  an  entirely  dif 
ferent  effect.  Here  was  a  difficulty,  a  discomfort, 
a  hardship,  but  it  came  in  a  natural  way,  and  not 
by  the  hand  of  a  dastardly  coward  of  a  man.  With 
naturally  happening  difficulties  they  were  accus 
tomed  to  combat  without  fear  or  repining.  They 
knew  all  about  snow,  and  were  not  frightened  by 
this  storm.  The  difficulties  which  it  presented  to 
their  minds  actually  raised  their  spirits,  and  from 
the  grim  and  quiet  beings  of  the  last  evening  they 
became  the  same  cheerful,  dauntless,  ready  women 
that  I  had  known  before. 

"  Upon  my  word,"  exclaimed  Mrs.  Aleshine,  as 
she  clapped  her  face  to  a  window  of  the  coach, 
"  if  this  is  n't  a  regular  old-fashioned  snow-storm  ! 
I  've  shoveled  my  own  way  through  many  a  one 
like  it  to  git  to  the  barn  to  do  my  milkin'  afore 
the  men  folks  had  begun  makin'  paths,  an7 1  feel 
jus'  like  as  though  I  could  do  it  ag'in." 

"  Now,  Barb'ry  Aleshine,"  said  Mrs.  Leeks,  "  if 
you  ?re  thinkin'  of  shovelin'  your  way  from  this 
place  to  where  your  cows  is,  you'd  better  step 
right  out  and  get  at  it,  and  I  really  do  think  that 


The  Diisantcs.  29 

if  you  felt  they  were  sufferin'  for  want  of  milkin7 
you  'd  make  a  start." 

"  I  don't  say/7  answered  Mrs.  Aleshine,  with  an 
illuminating  grin,  "  that  if  the  case  was  that  way 
I  might  n't  have  the  hankerin'  though  not  the 
capableness,  but  I  don't  know  that  there's  any 
place  to  shovel  our  way  to  jus'  now." 

Mrs.  Leeks  and  I  thought  differently.  Across 
the  road,  under  the  great  trees,  the  ground  was 
comparatively  free  from  snow,  and  in  some  places, 
owing  to  the  heavy  evergreen  foliage,  it  was  en 
tirely  bare.  It  was  very  desirable  that  we  should 
get  to  one  of  these  spots  and  build  a  fire,  for, 
though  we  had  been  well  wrapped  up,  we  all  felt 
numbed  and  cold.  In  the  boot  at  the  back  of  the 
coach  I  knew  that  there  was  an  ax,  and  I  thought 
I  might  possibly  find  there  a  shovel.  I  opened 
the  coach  door  and  saw  that  the  snow  was  already 
above  the  lower  step.  By  standing  on  the  spokes 
of  the  back  wheel  I  could  easily  get  at  the  boot, 
and  I  soon  pulled  out  the  ax,  but  found  no  shovel. 
But  this  did  not  deter  me.  I  made  my  way  to 
the  front  wheel  and  climbed  up  to  the  driver's 
box,  where  I  knocked  off  one  of  the  thin  planks 
of  the  foot-board,  and  this,  with  the  ax,  I  shaped 
into  a  rude  shovel  with  a  handle  rather  too  wide 
but  serviceable.  With  this  I  went  vigorously  to 


jo  The  Dmantes. 

work,  and  soon  had  made  a  pathway  across  the 
road.  Here  I  chopped  off  some  low  dead  branches, 
picked  up  others,  and  soon  had  a  crackling  fire, 
around  which  my  three  companions  gathered  with 
delight. 

A  strong  wind  was  now  blowing,  and  the  snow 
began  to  form  into  heavy  drifts.  The  fire  was 
very  cheery  and  pleasant,  but  the  wind  was  cut 
ting,  and  we  soon  returned  to  the  shelter  of  the 
coach,  where  we  had  our  breakfast.  This  was  not 
altogether  a  cold  meal,  for  Mrs.  Aleshine  had  pro 
vided  a  little  tea-kettle,  and,  with  some  snow 
water  which  I  brought  in  boiling  from  the  fire  in 
the  woods,  we  had  all  the  hot  and  comforting  tea 
we  wanted. 

We  passed  the  morning  waiting  and  looking  out 
and  wondering  what  sort  of  conveyance  would  be 
sent  for  us.  It  was  generally  agreed  that  nothing 
on  wheels  could  now  be  got  over  the  road,  and 
that  we  must  be  taken  away  in  a  sleigh. 

"I  like  sleigh-ridin',"  said  Mrs.  Aleshine,  "if 
you're  well  wrapped  up,  with  good  horses,  an'  a 
hot  brick  for  your  feet,  but  I  must  say  I  don't 
know  but  what  I  'm  goin'  to  be  a  little  skeery  goin' 
down  these  long  hills.  If  we  git  fairly  sliding 
hosses,  sleigh,  an'  all  together,  there 's  no  knowin' 
where  we  '11  fetch  up." 


The  Dusantc-s.  31 

"  There's  one  comfort,  Barbery/7  remarked  Mrs. 
Leeks,  "  and  that  is  that  when  we  do  fetch  up  it  '11 
be  at  the  bottom  of  the  hills,  and  not  at  the  top ; 
and  as  the  bottom  is  what  we  want  to  get  to,  we 
ought  n't  to  complain." 

"That  depends  a  good  deal  whether  we  come 
down  hindpart  foremost,  or  forepart  front.  But 
nobody  7s  complainin7  so  fur,  specially  as  the  sleigh 
is  n't  here." 

I  joined  in  the  outlooking  and  the  conjectures, 
but  I  could  not  keep  up  the  cheerful  courage 
which  animated  my  companions  j  for  not  only 
were  the  two  elder  women  bright  and  cheery,  but 
Ruth,  seemed  to  be  animated  and  encouraged  by 
their  example,  and  showed  herself  as  brave  and 
contented  as  either  of  them.  She  was  convinced 
that  her  father  must  have  reached  the  railroad 
station  before  it  began  to  snow,  and,  therefore, 
she  was  troubled  by  no  fears  for  his  safety.  But 
my  mind  was  filled  with  many  fears. 

The  snow  was  still  coming  down,  thick  and  fast, 
and  the  wind  was  piling  it  into  great  drifts,  one 
of  which  was  forming  between  the  coach  and  a 
low  embankment  on  that  side  of  the  road  near 
which  it  stood. 

About  every  half  hour  I  took  my  shovel  and 
cleared  out  the  path  across  the  road  from  the 


^2  The  Diixantcs. 

other  side  of  the  coach  to  the  woods.  Several 
times  after  doing  this  I  made  my  way  among  the 
trees,  where  the  snow  did  not  impede  my  prog 
ress,  to  points  from  which  I  had  a  view  some 
distance  down  the  mountain,  and  I  could  plainly 
see  that  there  were  several  places  where  the  road 
was  blocked  up  by  huge  snow-drifts.  It  would 
be  a  slow,  laborious,  and  difficult  undertaking  for 
any  relief  party  to  come  to  us  from  the  station  j 
and  who  was  there,  at  that  place,  to  come  ?  This 
was  the  question  which  most  troubled  me.  The 
settlement  at  the  station  was,  probably,  a  very 
small  one,  and  that  there  should  be  found  at  that 
place  a  sleigh  or  a  sledge  with  enough  men  to 
form  a  party  sufficiently  strong  to  open  a  road 
up  the  mountain-side  was  scarcely  to  be  expected. 
Men  and  vehicles  might  be  obtained  at  some  point 
farther  along  the  railroad,  but  action  of  this  kind 
would  require  time,  and  it  was  not  unlikely  that 
the  railroad  itself  was  blocked  up  with  snow.  I 
could  form  no  idea,  satisfactory  to  myself,  of  any 
plan  by  which  relief  could  come  to  us  that  day. 
Even  the  advent  of  a  messenger  on  horseback 
was  not  to  be  expected.  Such  an  adventurer 
would  be  lost  in  the  storm  and  among  the  drifts. 
On  the  morrow  relief  might  come,  but  I  did  not 
like  to  think  too  much  about  the  morrow;  and 


The  Diisantes.  33 

of  any  of  my  thoughts  and  fears  I  said  nothing 
to  my  companions. 

At  intervals,  after  I  had  freshly  cleared  out  the 
pathway,  the  three  women,  well  bundled  up,  ran 
across  the  road  to  the  fire  under  the  trees.  This 
was  the  only  way  in  which  they  could  keep  them 
selves  warm,  for  the  coach,  although  it  protected 
us  from  the  storm,  was  a  very  cold  place  to  sit 
in.  But  the  wind  and  the  snow  which  frequently 
drove  in  under  the  trees  made  it  impossible  to  stay 
very  long  by  the  fire,  and  the  frequent  passages 
to  and  from  the  coach  were  attended  with  much 
exposure  and  wetting  of  feet.  I  therefore  deter 
mined  that  some  better  way  must  be  devised  for 
keeping  ourselves  warm;  and,  shortly  after  our 
noonday  meal,  I  thought  of  a  plan,  and  immedi 
ately  set  to  work  to  carry  it  out. 

The  drift  between  the  coach  and  the  embank 
ment  had  now  risen  higher  than  the  top  of  the 
vehicle,  against  one  side  of  which  it  was  tightly 
packed.  I  dug  a  path  around  the  back  of  the 
coach,  and  then  began  to  tunnel  into  the  huge 
bank  of  snow.  In  about  an  hour  I  had  made  an 
excavation  nearly  high  enough  for  me  to  stand 
in,  and  close  to  the  stage  door  on  that  side  j  and 
I  cleared  away  the  suow  so  that  this  door  could 
open  into  the  cavern  I  had  formed.  At  the  end 


34  The  Dm antes. 

opposite  the  entrance  of  my  cave,  I  worked  a  hole 
upwards  until  I  reached  the  outer  air.  This  hole 
was  about  a  foot  in  diameter,  and  for  some  time 
the  light  unpacked  snow  from  above  kept  falling 
in  and  filling  it  up ;  but  I  managed,  by  packing 
and  beating  the  sides  with  my  shovel,  to  get  the 
whole  into  a  condition  in  which  it  would  retain 
the  form  of  a  rude  chimney. 

Now  I  hurried  to  bring  wood  and  twigs,  and 
having  made  a  hearth  of  green  sticks,  which  I  cut 
with  my  ax,  I  built  a  fire  in  this  snowy  fire-place. 
Mrs.  Leeks,  Mrs.  Aleshine,  and  Ruth  had  been 
watching  my  proceedings  with  great  interest ;  and 
when  the  fire  began  to  burn,  and  the  smoke  to  go 
out  of  my  chimney,  the  coach  door  was  opened, 
and  the  genial  heat  gradually  pervaded  the 
vehicle. 

"  Upon  my  word,"  exclaimed  Mrs.  Aleshine,  "  if 
that  is  n't  one  of  the  brightest  ideas  I  ever  heard 
of !  A  fire  in  the  middle  of  a  snow-bank,  with  a 
man  there  a-tendin'  to  it,  an'  a  chimney !  'T  is 
n't  every  day  that  you  can  see  a  thing  like  that ! " 

"I  should  hope  not,"  remarked  Mrs.  Leeks, 
"  for  if  the  snow  drifted  this  way  every  day,  I  'd 
be  ready  to  give  up  the  seein'  business  out-an'- 
out !  But  I  think,  Mr.  Craig,  you  ought  to  pass 
that  shovel  in  to  us  so  that  we  can  dig  you  out 


The  Dittanies.  35 

when  the  fire  begins  to  melt  your  little  house  and 
it  all  caves  in  on  you." 

"  You  can  have  the  shovel/'  said  I,  "  but  I  don't 
believe  this  snow-bank  will  cave  in  on  me.  Of 
course  the  heat  will  melt  the  snow,  but  I  think  it 
will  dissolve  gradually,  so  that  the  caving  in,  if 
there  is  any,  won't  be  of  much  account,  and  then 
we  shall  have  a  big  open  space  here  in  which  we 
can  keep  up  our  fire." 

"  Oh,  dear  ! "  exclaimed  Euth,  "  you  talk  as  if 
you  expected  to  stay  here  ever  so  long,  and  we 
certainly  can't  do  that.  We  should  starve  to 
death,  for  one  thing." 

"  Don't  be  afraid  of  that,"  said  Mrs.  Aleshine. 
"  There  's  plenty  of  victuals  to  last  till  the  people 
come  for  us.  When  I  pack  baskets  for  travelin' 
or  picnickin',  I  don't  do  no  scrimpin'.  An'  we  've 
got  to  keep  up  a  fire,  you  know,  for  it  would  n't 
be  pleasant  for  those  men,  when  they  Ve  cut  a 
way  up  the  mountain  to  git  at  us,  to  find  us  all 
froze  stiff." 

Mrs.  Leeks  smiled.  "  You  're  awful  tender  of 
the  feelin's  of  other  people,  Barb'ry,"  she  said, 
"  and  a  heart  as  warm  as  yourn  ought  to  keep 
from  freezin'." 

"  Which  it  has  done,  so  far,"  said  Mrs.  Aleshine 
complacently. 


36  The  Dusantes. 

As  I  had  expected,  the  water  soon  began  to  drip 
from  the  top  and  the  sides  of  my  cavern,  and  the 
chimney  rapidly  enlarged  its  dimensions.  I  made 
a  passage  for  the  melted  snow  to  run  off  into  a 
hollow,  back  of  the  coach ;  and  as  I  kept  up  a 
good  strong  fire,  the  drops  of  water  and  occasional 
pieces  of  snow  which  fell  into  it  w.ere  not  able 
to  extinguish  it.  The  cavern  enlarged  rapidly, 
and  in  a  little  more  than  an  hour  the  roof  be 
came  so  thin  that  while  I  was  outside  collecting 
wood  it  fell  in  and  extinguished  the  fire.  This 
accident,  however,  interrupted  my  operations  but 
for  a  short  time.  I  cleared  away  the  snow  at  the 
bottom  of  the  excavation,  and  rebuilt  my  fire  on 
the  bare  ground.  The  high  snow  walls  on  three 
sides  of  it  protected  it  from  the  wind,  so  that  there 
was  no  danger  of  the  flames  being  blown  against 
the  stage-coach,  while  the  large  open  space  above 
allowed  a  free  vent  for  the  smoke. 

About  the  middle  of  the  afternoon,  to  the  great 
delight  of  us  all,  it  stopped  snowing,  and  when  I 
had  freshly  shoveled  out  the  path  across  the  road, 
my  companions  gladly  embraced  the  opportunity 
of  walking  over  to  the  comparatively  protected 
ground  under  the  trees  and  giving  themselves  a 
little  exercise.  During  their  absence  I  was  busily 
engaged  in  arranging  the  fire,  when  I  heard  a  low 


The  Dusantcs.  37 

crunching  sound  on  one  side  of  me,  and,  turning 
my  head,  I  saw  in  the  wall  of  my  excavation  oppo 
site  to  the  stage-coach  and  at  a  distance  of  four  or 
five  feet  from  the  ground  an  irregular  hole  in  the 
snow,  about  a  foot  in  diameter,  from  which  pro 
truded  the  head  of  a  man.  This  head  was  wrapped, 
with  the  exception  of  the  face,  in  a  brown  woolen 
comforter.  The  features  were  those  of  a  man  of 
about  fifty,  a  little  sallow  and  thin,  without  beard, 
whiskers,  or  mustache,  although  the  cheeks  and 
chin  were  darkened  with  a  recent  growth. 

The  astounding  apparition  of  this  head  project 
ing  itself  from  the  snow  wall  of  my  cabin  utterly 
paralyzed  me,  so  that  I  neither  moved  nor  spoke, 
but  remained  crouching  by  the  fire,  my  eyes 
fixed  upon  the  head.  It  smiled  a  little,  and  then 
spoke. 

"  Could  you  lend  me  a  small  iron  pot  ?  "  it  said. 

I  rose  to  my  feet,  almost  ready  to  run  away. 
"Was  this  a  dream  ?  Or  was  it  possible  that  there 
was  a  race  of  beings  who  inhabited  snow-banks  ? 

The  face  smiled  again  very  pleasantly.  "Do 
not  be  frightened,"  it  said.  "I  saw  you  were 
startled,  and  spoke  first  of  a  familiar  pot  in  order 
to  reassure  you." 

"Who,   in  the  name  of  Heaven,  are  you?"  I 
gasped. 
4 


$8  The  Dm  antes. 

"  I  am  only  a  traveler,  sir/7  said  the  head,  "  who 
has  met  with  an  accident  similar,  I  imagine,  to 
that  which  has  befallen  yon.  Bnt  I  cannot  fur 
ther  converse  with  yon  in  this  position.  Lying 
thus  on  my  breast  in  a  tnnnel  of  snow  will  in 
juriously  chill  me.  Conld  yon  conveniently  lend 
me  an  iron  pot  ? " 

I  was  now  convinced  that  this  was  an  ordinary 
human  being,  and  my  courage  and  senses  returned 
to  me,  but  my  astonishment  remained  boundless. 
"  Before  we  talk  of  pots/'  I  said,  "  I  must  know 
who  you  are  and  how  you  got  into  that  snow 
bank." 

"  I  do  not  believe,"  said  my  visitor,  "that  I  can 
get  down,  head  foremost,  to  your  level.  I  will 
therefore  retire  to  my  place  of  refuge,  and  per 
haps  we  can  communicate  with  each  other  through 
this  aperture." 

"Can  I  get  through  to  your  place  of  refuge?" 
I  asked. 

"  Certainly/'  was  the  answer.  "  You  are  young 
and  active,  and  the  descent  will  not  be  so  deep  on 
my  side.  But  I  will  first  retire,  and  will  then 
project  towards  you  this  sheep-skin  rug,  which,  if 
kept  under  you  as  you  move  forward,  will  protect 
your  breast  and  arms  from  direct  contact  with 
the  snow." 


The  Dm  antes.  39 

It  was  difficult  to  scramble  up  into  the  hole, 
but  I  succeeded  in  doing  it,  and  found  awaiting 
me  the  sheep-skin  rug,  which,  by  the  aid  of  an 
umbrella,  the  man  had  pushed  towards  me  for  my 
use.  I  was  in  a  horizontal  tunnel  barely  large 
enough  for  the  passage  of  my  body,  and  about 
six  feet  in  length.  When  I  had  worked  my  way 
through  this  and  had  put  my  head  out  of  the 
other  end,  I  looked  into  a  small  wooden  shed, 
into  which  light  entered  only  through  a  pane 
of  glass  set  in  a  rude  door  opposite  to  me.  I 
immediately  perceived  that  the  whole  place  was 
filled  with  the  odor  of  spirituous  liquors.  The 
man  stood  awaiting  me,  and  by  his  assistance  I 
descended  to  the  floor.  As  I  did  so  I  heard  some 
thing  which  sounded  like  a  titter,  and  looking 
around  I  saw  in  a  corner  a  bundle  of  clothes  and 
traveling-rugs,  near  the  top  of  which  appeared  a 
pair  of  eyes.  Turning  again,  I  could  discern  in 
another  corner  a  second  bundle,  similar  to,  but 
somewhat  larger  than,  the  other. 

"  These  ladies  are  traveling  with  me,"  said  the 
man,  who  was  now  wrapping  about  him  a  large 
cloak,  and  who  appeared  to  be  of  a  tall  though 
rather  slender  figure.  His  manner  and  voice 
were  those  of  a  gentleman  extremely  courteous 
and  considerate.  "  As  I  am  sure  you  are  curi- 


4O  The  Dusantes. 

ous —  and  this  I  regard  as  quite  natural,  sir  — 
to  know  why  we  are  here,  I  will  at  once  proceed 
to  inform  you.  We  started  yesterday  in  a  car 
riage  for  the  railway  station,  which  is,  I  believe, 
some  miles  beyond  this  point.  There  were  two 
roads  from  .the  last  place  at  which  we  stopped, 
and  we  chose  the  one  which  ran  along  a  valley 
and  which  we  supposed  would  be  the  pleasanter 
of  the  two.  We  there  engaged  a  pair  of  horses 
which  did  not  prove  very  serviceable  animals,  and, 
at  a  point  about  a  hundred  yards  from  where  we 
now  are,  one  of  them  gave  out  entirely.  The 
driver  declared  that  the  only  thing  to  be  done 
was  to  turn  loose  the  disabled  horse,  which  would 
be  certain,  in  time,  to  find  his  way  back  to  his 
stable,  and  for  him  to  proceed  on  the  other  animal 
to  the  station  to  which  we  were  going,  where  he 
would  procure  some  fresh  horses  and  return  as 
speedily  as  possible.  To  this  plan  we  were  obliged 
to  consent,  as  there  was  no  alternative.  He  told 
us  that  if  we  did  not  care  to  remain  in  the  car 
riage,  there  was  a  shed  by  the  side  of  the  road, 
a  little  farther  on,  which  was  erected  for  the  ac 
commodation  of  men  who  are  sometimes  here  in 
charge  of  relays  of  horses.  After  assuring  us 
that  he  would  not  be  absent  more  than  three 
hours,  he  rode  away,  and  we  have  not  seen  him 


The-  Dusantcs.  41 

since.  Soon  after  lie  left  us  I  came  up  to  this 
shed,  and  finding  it  tight  and  comparatively  com 
fortable,  I  concluded  it  would  give  us  relief  from 
our  somewhat  cramped  position  in  the  carriage, 
and  so  conducted  the  ladies  here.  As  night  drew 
on  it  became  very  cold,  and  I  determined  to  make 
a  fire,  a  proceeding  which  of  course  would  have 
been  impossible  in  a  vehicle.  Fortunately  I  had 
with  me,  at  the  back  of  the  carriage,  a  case  of  Cal 
ifornia  brandy.  By  the  aid  of  a  stone  I  knocked 
the  top  off  this  case,  and  brought  hither  several  of 
the  bottles.  I  found  in  the  shed  an  old  tin  pan 
which  I  filled  with  the  straw  coverings  of  the 
bottles,  and  on  this  I  poured  brandy,  which,  be 
ing  ignited,  produced  a  fire  without  smoke,  but 
which,  as  we  gathered  around  it,  gave  out  consid 
erable  heat." 

As  the  speaker  thus  referred  to  his  fuel,  I  un 
derstood  the  reason  of  the  strong  odor  of  spirits 
which  filled  the  shed,  and  I  experienced  a  certain 
relief  in  my  mind. 

The  gentleman  continued :  "  At  first  I  attributed 
the  delay  of  the  driver's  return  to  those  ordinary 
hindrances  which  so  frequently  occur  in  rural  and 
out-of-the-way  places ;  but,  after  a  time,  I  could 
not  imagine  any  reasonable  cause  for  his  delay. 
As  it  began  to  grow  dark  I  brought  here  our  pro- 


42  The  Dm  antes. 

vision  baskets,  and  we  partook  of  a  slight  repast. 
I  then  made  the  ladies  as  comfortable  as  possible 
and  awaited  with  much  anxiety  the  return  of  the 
driver. 

"After  a  time  it  began  to  snow,  and  feeling 
that  the  storm  might  interrupt  communication 
with  the  carriage,  I  brought  hither,  making  many 
trips  for  the  purpose,  the  rest  of  the  brandy,  our 
wraps  and  rugs,  and  the  cushions  of  the  carriage. 
I  did  not  believe  that  we  should  be  left  here  all 
night,  but  thought  it  prudent  to  take  all  precau 
tions  and  to  prepare  for  remaining  in  a  place 
where  we  could  have  a  fire.  The  morning  showed 
me  that  I  had  acted  wisely.  As  you  know,  sir, 
I  found  the  road  in  either  direction  completely 
blocked  up  by  snow,  and  I  have  since  been  un 
able  to  visit  the  carriage." 

"  Have  you  not  all  suffered  from  cold  f "  I  in 
quired.  "  Have  you  food  enough  ? " 

"  I  will  not  say,"  replied  the  gentleman,  "  that 
in  addition  to  our  anxiety  we  have  not  suffered 
somewhat  from  cold,  but  for  the  greater  part  of 
this  day  I  have  adopted  a  plan  which  has  resulted 
in  considerable  comfort  to  my  companions.  I 
have  wrapped  them  up  very  closely  and  warmly, 
and  they  hold  in  each  hand  a  hard-boiled  egg.  I 
thought  it  better  to  keep  these  for  purposes  of 


The  Diixantcs.  43 

warmth  than  to  eat  them.  About  every  half  hour 
I  reboil  the  eggs  in  a  little  traveling  teapot  which 
we  have.  They  retain  their  warmth  for  a  con 
siderable  period,  and  this  warmth  in  a  moderate 
degree  is  communicated  through  the  hands  to  the 
entire  person." 

As  he  said  this  a  low  laugh  again  burst  forth 
from  the  bundle  in  one  corner  of  the  room,  and  I 
could  not  help  smiling  at  this  odd  way  of  keep 
ing  warm.  I  looked  towards  the  jocose  bundle  and 
remarked  that  the  eggs  must  be  pretty  hard  by 
this  time. 

"  These  ladies,"  said  the  gentleman,  "are  not  ac 
customed  to  the  cold  atmosphere  of  this  region, 
and  I  have,  therefore,  forbidden  them  to  talk,  hop 
ing  thus  to  prevent  injury  from  the  inhalation 
of  frosty  air.  So  far  we  have  not  suffered,  and 
we  still  have  some  food  left.  About  noon  I  noticed 
smoke  floating  over  this  shed,  and  I  forced  open 
the  door  and  made  my  way  for  some  little  distance 
outside,  hoping  to  discover  whence  it  came.  I  then 
heard  voices  on  the  other  side  of  the  enormous 
snow-drift  behind  us,  but  I  could  see  no  possi 
ble  way  of  getting  over  the  drift.  Feeling  that  I 
must,  without  fail,  open  communication  with  any 
human  beings  who  might  be  near  us,  I  attempted 
to  shout,  but  the  cold  had  so  affected  my  voice 


44  The  Ditsantes. 

that  I  could  not  do  so.  I  thereupon  set  my  wits  to 
work.  At  the  back  of  this  shed  is  a  small  window 
closed  by  a  wooden  shutter.  I  opened  this  shutter 
and  found  outside  a  wall  of  snow  packed  closely 
against  it.  The  snow  was  not  very  hard,  and  I 
believed  that  it  would  not  be  difficult  to  tunnel  a 
way  through  it  to  the  place  where  the  voices  seemed 
to  be.  I  immediately  set  to  work,  for  I  feared  that 
if  we  were  obliged  to  remain  here  another  night 
without  assistance  we  should  be  compelled  to 
morrow  morning  to  eat  those  four  hard-boiled 
eggs  which  the  ladies  are  holding,  and  which,  very 
shortly,  I  must  boil  again." 

"  How  did  you  manage  to  cut  through  the 
snow  ? "  I  asked.  "  Had  you  a  shovel  f " 

"  Oh,  no,"  replied  the  other.  "  I  used  the  tin 
pan.  I  found  it  answered  very  well  as  a  scoop. 
Each  time  that  I  filled  it  I  threw  the  contents  out 
of  our  door." 

"  It  must  have  been  slow  and  difficult  work," 
I  said. 

"Indeed  it  was,"  he  replied.  "The  labor  was 
arduous  and  occupied  me  several  hours.  But 
when  I  saw  a  respectable  man  at  a  fire,  and  a 
stage-coach  near  by,  I  felt  rewarded  for  all  my 
trouble.  May  I  ask  you,  sir,  how  you  came  to  be 
thus  snow-bound  ?  " 


The  Dusantcs.  45 

I  then  briefly  related  the  circumstances  of  our 
mishap,  and  had  scarcely  finished  when  a  shrill 
sound  came  through  the  tunnel  into  the  shed.  It 
was  the  voice  of  Mrs.  Aleshine. 

"  Hello  ! "  she  screamed,  "  are  you  in  there  ? 
An7  you  don't  mean  to  tell  me  there  are  other 
people  in  that  hole  1 " 

Feeling  quite  certain  that  my  wife  and  her  com 
panions  were  in  a  state  of  mental  agitation  on  the 
other  side  of  the  drift,  I  called  back  that  I  would 
be  with  them  in  a  moment,  and  then  explained  to 
the  gentleman  why  I  could  not  remain  with  him 
longer.  "  But  before  I  go/7  I  said,  "  is  there  any 
thing  I  can  do  for  you  ?  Do  you  really  want  an 
iron  pot  ? " 

"  The  food  that  remains  to  us,"  he  answered, 
"is  fragmentary  and  rather  distasteful  to  the 
ladies,  and  I  thought  if  I  could  make  a  little  stew 
of  it,  it  might  prove  more  acceptable  to  them. 
But  do  not  let  me  detain  you  another  instant 
from  your  friends,  and  I  advise  you  to  go  through 
that  tunnel  feet  foremost,  for  you  might  otherwise 
experience  difficulties  in  getting  out  at  the  other 
end." 

I  accepted  his  suggestion,  and  by  his  assistance 
and  the  help  of  the  rough  window-frame,  I  got 
into  the  hole  feet  first,  and  soon  ejected  myself 


46  The  Ditsantes. 

into  the  midst  of  my  alarmed  companions.  When 
they  heard  where  I  had  been,  and  what  I  had  seen, 
they  were  naturally  astounded. 

"  Another  party  deserted  at  this  very  point ! " 
exclaimed  Ruth,  who  was  both  excitable  and  im 
aginative.  "  This  looks  like  a  conspiracy !  Are 
we  to  be  robbed  and  murdered  ? " 

At  these  words  Mrs.  Aleshine  sprang  towards 
me.  "  Mr.  Craig/7  she  exclaimed,  "  if  it  's  robbers, 
don't  lose  a  minute  !  Never  let  7em  git  ahead  of 
you  !  Pull  out  your  pistol  and  fire  through  the 
hole ! " 

"  Gracious  me,  Barb'ry  Aleshine,"  said  Mrs. 
Leeks,  "you  don't  suppose  the  robbers  is  them 
poor  unfortunates  on  the  other  side  of  the  drift ! 
And  I  must  say,  Mrs.  Craig,  that  if  there  was  any 
such  thing  as  a  conspiracy,  your  father  must  have 
been  in  it,  for  it  was  him  who  landed  us  just  here. 
But  of  course  none  of  us  supposes  nothin'  of  that 
kind,  and  the  first  thing  we  Ve  got  to  think  of  is 
what  we  can  do  for  them  poor  people." 

"They  seem  to  have  some  food  left,  but  not 
much,"  I  said,  "  and  I  fear  they  must  be  suffering 
from  cold." 

"  Could  n't  we  poke  some  wood  to  them  through 
this  hole  ? "  said  Mrs.  Aleshine,  whose  combative 
feelings  had  changed  to  the  deepest  compassion. 


The  Dusantes.  47 

"  I  should  think  they  must  be  nearly  froze,  with 
nothin'  to  warm  'em  but  hard-b'iled  eggs." 

I  explained  that  there  was  no  place  in  their 
shed  where  they  could  build  a  fire,  and  proposed 
that  we  should  give  them  some  hot  tea  and  some 
of  our  provisions. 

"  That 's  so  !  "  said  Mrs.  Aleshine.  "  An>  jus* 
shout  in  to  them  that  if  they  '11  shove  them  eggs 
through  the  hole,  I  '11  bile  ?em  fur  'em  as  often  as 
they  want  'em." 

"I  've  just  got  to  say  this,"  ejaculated  Mrs. 
Leeks,  as  she  and  Mrs.  Aleshine  were  busily  plac 
ing  a  portion  of  our  now  very  much  reduced 
stock  of  provisions  in  the  smallest  of  our  bas 
kets  :  "  This  is  the  first  time  in  my  life  that  I  ever 
heard  of  people  warmin'  themselves  up  with  hens' 
eggs  and  spirits,  excep'  when  mixed  up  into  egg- 
nog  j  and  that  they  resisted  that  temptation  and 
contented  themselves  with  plain  honest  heat, 
though  very  little  of  it,  shows  what  kind  of  people 
they  must  be.  And  now  do  you  suppose  we  could 
slide  this  basket  in  without  upsettin'  the  little 
kittle  ?» 

I  called  to  the  gentleman  that  we  were  about 
to  send  him  a  basket,  and  then,  by  the  aid  of  an 
umbrella,  I  gently  pushed  it  through  the  snow- 
tunnel  to  a  point  where  he  could  reach  it.  Hearty 


48  The  Dus antes. 

thanks  came  back  to  us  through  the  hole,  and 
when  the  basket  and  kettle  were  returned,  we  pre 
pared  our  own  evening  meal. 

"  For  the  life  of  me,"  said  Mrs.  Leeks,  as  she 
sipped  a  cup  of  tea,  "I  can't  imagine,  if  there 
was  a  shed  so  near  us,  why  we  did  n't  know  it." 

"  That  has  been  puzzling  me,"  I  replied  ;  "  but 
the  other  road,  on  which  the  shed  is  built,  is  prob 
ably  lower  than  this  one,  so  that  the  upper  part 
of  the  shed  could  not  have  projected  far  above 
the  embankment  between  the  two  roads,  and  if 
there  were  weeds  and  dead  grasses  on  the  bank, 
as  there  probably  were,  they  would  have  pre 
vented  us  from  noticing  the  top  of  a  weather 
worn  shed." 

"  Especially,"  said  Mrs.  Leeks,  "  as  we  was  n't 
lookin'  for  sheds,  and,  as  far  as  I  know,  we  was  n't 
lookin'.  for  anythin'  on  that  side  of  the  coach, 
for  all  my  eyes  was  busy  starin'  about  on  the 
side  we  got  in  and  out  of,  and  down  the  road." 

"  Which  mine  was  too,"  added  Mrs.  Aleshine. 
"An'  after  it  begun  to  snow  we  could  n't  see 
nothin'  anyhow,  particularly  when  everything  was 
all  covered  up." 

"  Well,"  added  Mrs.  Leeks  in  conclusion,  "  as  we 
did  n't  see  the  shed,  it 's  a  comfort  to  think  there 
was  reasons  for  it  and  that  we  are  not  born  fools." 


The  Dusantes.  49 

It  was  now  growing  dark,  and  but  few  fur 
ther  communications  took  place  through  the  little 
tunnel. 

"  Before  we  get  ready  to  go  to  sleep,"  said  Mrs. 
Aleshine,  "for,  havin'  no  candles,  I  guess 'we 
won't  sit  up  late,  had  n't  we  better  rig  up  some 
kind  of  a  little  sled  to  put  in  that  hole,  with  strings 
at  both  ends,  so  that  we  kin  send  in  mustard-plas 
ters  and  peppermint  to  them  poor  people  if  they 
happen  to  be  sick  in  the  night  ? n 

This  little  project  was  not  considered  necessary, 
and  after  receiving  assurances  from  the  gentle 
man  on  the  other  side  that  he  would  be  able  to 
keep  his  party  warm  until  morning,  we  bade  each 
other  good-night,  and  after  having  replenished 
the  fire,  I  got  into  the  stage,  where  my  compan 
ions  had  already  established  themselves  in  their 
corners.  I  slept  very  little,  while  I  frequently 
went  out  to  attend  to  the  fire,  and  my  mind  was 
racked  by  the  most  serious  apprehensions.  Our 
food  was  nearly  gone,  and  if  relief  did  not  come 
to  us  very  soon  I  could  see  nothing  but  a  slow 
death  before  us,  and,  so  far  as  I  could  imagine, 
there  was  no  more  reason  to  expect  succor  on  the 
following  day  than  there  had  been  on  the  one  just 
passed.  Where  were  the  men  to  be  found  who  could 
cut  a  road  to  us  through  those  miles  of  snow-drifts  ? 


50  The  Dus  antes. 

Very  little  was  said  during  the  night  by  my 
companions,  but  I  am  sure  that  they  felt  the  seri 
ousness  of  our  situation,  and  that  their  slumbers 
were  broken  and  unrefreshing.  If  there  had  been 
anything  to  do,  Mrs.  Leeks  and  Mrs.  Aleshine 
would  have  been  cheered  up  by  the  prospect  of 
doing  it  j  but  we  all  felt  that  there  was  nothing 
we  could  do. 


PART    II 

A  FTER  a  second  night  spent  in  the  stage-coach 
-£j^-  on  that  lonely  and  desolate  mountain-road 
where  we  were  now  snow-bound,  I  arose  early  in 
the  morning  and  went  into  the  forest  to  collect 
some  fuel  5  and  while  thus  engaged  I  made  the 
discovery  that  the  suow  was  covered  with  a  hard 
crust  which  would  bear  my  weight.  After  the 
storm  had  ceased  the  day  before,  the  sun  had 
shone  brightly  and  the  temperature  had  moderated 
very  much,  so  that  the  surface  of  the  snow  had 
slightly  thawed.  During  the  night  it  became  cold 
again,  and  this  surface  froze  into  a  hard  coating 
of  ice.  When  I  found  I  could  walk  where  I  pleased, 
my  spirits  rose,  and  I  immediately  set  out  to  view 
the  situation.  The  aspect  of  the  road  gave  me  no 
encouragement.  The  snowfall  had  been  a  heavy 
one,  but  had  it  not  been  for  the  high  wind  which 
accompanied  it,  it  would  have  thrown  but  mod 
erate  difficulties  in  the  way  of  our  rescue.  Reach- 

51 


52  The  Diisantes. 

ing  a  point  which  commanded  a  considerable  view 
along  the  side  of  the  mountain,  I  could  see  that  in 
many  places  the  road  was  completely  lost  to  sight 
on  account  of  the  great  snow-drifts  piled  up  on  it. 
I  then  walked  to  the  point  where  the  two  roads 
met,  and  crossing  over,  I  climbed  a  slight  rise  in 
the  ground  which  had  cut  off  my  view  in  this 
direction,  and  found  myself  in  a  position  from 
which  I  could  look  directly  down  the  side  of  the 
mountain  below  the  road. 

Here  the  mountain-side,  which  I  had  supposed 
to  be  very  steep  and  rugged,  descended  in  a  long 
and  gradual  slope  to  the  plains  below,  and  for  the 
greater  part  of  the  distance  was  covered  by  a 
smooth,  shining  surface  of  frozen  snow,  unbroken 
by  rock  or  tree.  This  snowy  slope  apparently 
extended  for  a  mile  or  more,  and  then  I  could  see 
that  it  gradually  blended  inself  into  the  greenish- 
brown  turf  of  the  lower  country.  Down  there  in 
the  valley  there  still  were  leaves  upon  the  trees, 
and  there  were  patches  of  verdure  over  the  land. 
The  storm  which  had  piled  its  snows  up  here 
had  given  them,  rain  down  there  and  had  fresh 
ened  everything.  It  was  like  looking-  down  into 
another  climate,  and  on  another  land.  I  saw  a 
little  smoke  coming  up  behind  a  patch  of  trees. 
It  must  be  that  there  was  a  house  there  !  Could 


The  Diisantes.  53 

it  be  possible  that  we  were  within  a  mile  or  two 
of  a  human  habitation  ?  Yet,  what  comfort  was 
there  in  that  thought  ?  The  people  in  that  house 
could  not  get  to  us  nor  we  to  them,  nor  could  they 
have  heard  of  our  situation,  for  the  point  where 
our  road  reached  the  lower  country  was  miles 
farther  on. 

As  I  stood  thus  and  gazed,  it  seemed  to  me  that 
I  could  make  a  run  and  slide  down  the  mountain 
side  into  green  fields,  into  safety,  into  life.  I 
remembered  those  savage  warriors  who,  looking 
from  the  summits  of  the  Alps  upon  the  fertile 
plains  of  Italy,  seated  themselves  upon  their  shields 
and  slid  down  to  conquest  and  rich  spoils. 

An  idea  came  into  my  mind,  and  I  gave  it  glad 
welcome.  There  was  no  time  to  be  lost.  The  sun 
was  not  yet  high,  but  it  was  mounting  in  a  clear 
sky,  and  should  its  rays  become  warm  enough  to 
melt  the  crust  on  which  I  stood,  our  last  chance 
of  escape  would  be  gone.  To  plow  our  way  to  any 
place,  through  deep,  soft  snow,  would  be  impos 
sible.  I  hurried  back  to  our  coach,  and  found 
three  very  grave  women  standing  around  the  fire. 
They  were  looking  at  a  small  quantity  of  food  at 
the  bottom  of  a  large  basket. 

"That's  every  crumb  there  is  left/'  said  Mrs. 
Aleshine  to  me,  "and  when  we  pass  in  some  to 


54  The  Dus  antes. 

them  unfortunates  on  the  other  side  of  the  drift, — 
which,  of  course,  we're  bound  to  do, — well  have 
what  I  call  a  skimpy  meal.  And  that's  not  the 
worst  of  it.  Until  somebody  gets  up  to  us,  it  will 
be  our  last  meal." 

I  took  my  poor  Euth  by  the  hand,  for  she  was 
looking  very  pale  and  troubled,  and  I  said :  "  My 
dear  friends,  nobody  can  get  up  to  this  place  for  a 
long,  long  time  j  and  before  help  could  possibly 
reach  us  we  should  all  be  dead.  But  do  not  be 
frightened.  It  is  not  necessary  to  wait  for  any 
one  to  come  to  us.  The  snow  is  now  covered  with 
a  crust  which  will  bear  our  weight.  I  have  thought 
of  a  way  in  which  we  can  slide  down  the  mountain 
side,  which,  from  a  spot  where  I  have  been  stand 
ing  this  morning,  is  no  steeper  than  some  coasting 
hills,  though  very  much  longer.  In  a  few  minutes 
we  can  pass  from  this  region  of  snow,  where  death 
from  cold  and  starvation  must  soon  overtake  us, 
to  a  grassy  valley  where  there  is  no  snow,  and 
where  we  shall  be  within  walking  distance  of  a 
house  in  which  people  are  living." 

Ruth  grasped  my  arm.  "  Will  it  be  safe  ? "  she 
exclaimed. 

"I  think  so,"  I  answered.  "I  see  no  reason 
why  we  should  meet  with  any  accident.  At  any 
rate,  it  is  much  safer  than  remaining  here  for 


The  Diisantzs.  55 

another  hour ;  for  if  the  crust  melts,  our  last 
chance  is  gone.'7 

"Mr.  Craig,"  said  Mrs.  Leeks,  "me  and  Mrs. 
Aleshine  is  no  hands  at  coastin'  down-hill,  havin' 
given  up  that  sort  of  thing  since  we  was  little 
girls  with  short  frocks  and  it  did  n't  make  no 
matter  any  way.  But  you  know  more  about 
these  things  than  we  do ;  and  if  you  say  we  can 
get  out  of  this  dreadful  place  by  slidin'  down-hill, 
we  're  ready  to  follow,  if  you  '11  just  go  ahead. 
We  followed  you  through  the  ocean  with  nothin' 
between  our  feet  and  the  bottom  but  miles  o' 
water  and  nobody  knows  what  sorts  of  dreadful 
fish,  and  when  you  say  it 's  the  right  way  to  save 
our  lives,  we  're  ready  to  follow  you  again.  And 
as  for  you,  Mrs.  Ruth,  don't  you  be  frightened. 
I  don't  know  what  we're  goin'  to  slide  on,  but, 
.whatever  it  is,  even  if  it 's  our  own  selves,  me  and 
Mrs.  Aleshine  will  take  you  between  us,  and  if 
anything  is  run  against,  we  '11  get  the  bumps,  and 
not  you." 

I  was  delighted  to  see  how  rapidly  my  propo 
sition  was  accepted,  and  we  made  a  hasty  break 
fast,  first  sending  in  some  of  our  food  to  the  other 
party.  The  gentleman  reported  through  the  hole 
of  communication  that  they  were  all  fairly  well, 
but  a  good  deal  stiffened  by  cold  and  want  of 


56  The  Diisantes. 

exercise.  He  inquired,  in  a  very  anxious  voice,  if 
I  had  discovered  any  signs  of  approaching  relief. 
To  this  I  replied  that  I  had  devised  a  plan  by 
which  we  could  get  ourselves  out  of  our  present 
dangerous  situation,  and  that  in  a  very  short  time 
I  would  come  around  to  the  door  of  his  shed  — 
for  I  could  now  walk  on  the  crusted  snow  —  and 
tell  him  about  it.  He  answered  that  these  words 
cheered  his  heart,  and  that  he  would  do  every 
thing  possible  to  cooperate  with  me. 

I  now  went  to  work  vigorously.  I  took  the 
cushions  from  the  coach,  four  of  them  altogether, 
and  carried  them  to  the  brink  of  the  slope  down 
which  I  purposed  to  make  our  descent.  I  also 
conveyed  thither  a  long  coil  of  rawhide  rope 
which  I  had  previously  discovered  in  the  boot  of 
the  coach.  I  then  hurried  along  the  other  road, 
which,  as  has  been  said  before,  lay  at  a  somewhat 
lower  level  than  the  one  we  were  on,  and  when 
I  reached  the  shed  I  found  the  door  had  been 
opened,  and  the  gentleman,  with  his  tin  pan,  had 
scooped  away  a  good  deal  of  the  snow  about  it, 
so  as  to  admit  of  a  moderately  easy  passage  in  and 
out.  He  met  me  outside,  and  grasped  my  hand. 

"  Sir,  if  you  have  a  plan  to  propose/7  he  said, 
"  state  it  quickly.  We  are  in  a  position  of  great 
danger.  Those  two  ladies  inside  the  shed  cannot 


The  Dittanies.  57 

much  longer  endure  this  exposure,  and  I  presume 
that  the  ladies  in  your  party — although  their 
voices,  which  I  occasionally  hear,  do  not  seem  to 
indicate  it — must  be  in  a  like  condition." 

I  replied  that,  so  far,  my  companions  had  borne 
up  very  well,  and  without  further  waste  of  words 
proceeded  to  unfold  my  plan  of  escape. 

When  he  had  heard  it  the  gentleman  put  on 
a  very  serious  expression.  "  It  seems  hazardous," 
he  said,  "  but  it  may  be  the  only  way  out  of  our 
danger.  Will  you  show  me  the  point  from  which 
you  took  your  observations  ?  " 

"  Yes,"  said  I,  "  but  we  must  be  in  haste.  The 
sun  is  getting  up  in  the  sky,  and  this  crust  may 
soon  begin  to  melt.  It  is  not  yet  really  winter, 
you  know.'7 

We  stepped  quickly  to  the  spot  where  I  had 
carried  the  cushions.  The  gentleman  stood  and 
silently  gazed,  first  at  the  blocked-up  roadway, 
then  at  the  long,  smooth  slope  of  the  mountain-side 
directly  beneath  us,  and  then  at  the  verdure  of  the 
plain  below,  which  had  grown  greener  under  the 
increasing  brightness  of  day.  "Sir,"  said  he, 
turning  to  me,  "  there  is  nothing  to  be  done  but 
to  adopt  your  plan,  or  to  remain  here  and  die.  We 
will  accompany  you  in  the  descent,  and  I  place 
myself  under  your  orders." 


5#  The  Dm antes. 

"  The  first  thing/7  said  I,  "  is  to  bring  here  your 
carriage  cushions,  and  help  me  to  arrange  them." 

When  he  had  brought  the  three  cushions  from 
the  shed,  the  gentleman  and  I  proceeded  to  place 
them  with  the  others  on  the  snow,  so  that  the 
whole  formed  a  sort  of  wide  and  nearly  square 
mattress.  Then,  with  a  rawhide  rope,  we  bound 
them  together  in  a  rough  but  secure  net- work  of 
cordage.  In  this  part  of  the  work  I  found  my 
companion  very  apt  and  skillful. 

When  this  rude  mattress  was  completed,  I  re 
quested  the  gentleman  to  bring  his  ladies  to  the 
place  while  I  went  for  mine. 

"  What  are  we  to  pack  up  to  take  with  us  ? "  said 
Mrs.  Aleshine,  when  I  reached  our  coach. 

"We  take  nothing  at  all,'7  said  I,  "but  the 
money  in  our  pockets  and  our  rugs  and  wraps. 
Everything  else  must  be  left  in  the  coach,  to  be 
brought  down  to  us  when  the  roads  shall  be 
cleared  out.77 

With  our  rugs  and  shawls  on  our  arms  we  left 
the  coach,  and  as  we  were  crossing  the  other  road 
we  saw  the  gentleman  and  his  companions  ap 
proaching.  These  ladies  were  very  much  wrapped 
up,  but  one  of  them  seemed  to  step  along  lightly 
and  without  difficulty,  while  the  other  moved 
slowly  and  was  at  times  assisted  by  the  gentleman. 


The  Dwantes.  59 

A  breeze  had  sprung  up  which  filled  the  air  with 
fine  frozen  particles  blown  from  the  uncrusted 
beds  of  snow  along  the  edge  of  the  forest,  and  I 
counseled  Ruth  to  cover  up  her  mouth  and  breathe 
as  little  of  this  snow  powder  as  possible. 

"  If  I  'm  to  go  coastin'  at  all,"  said  Mrs.  Aleshine, 
"  I  'd  as  lief  do  it  with  strangers  as  friends ;  and  a 
little  liefer,  for  that  matter,  if  there 's  any  bones 
to  be  broken.  But  I  must  say  that  1 7d  like  to  make 
the  acquaintance  of  them  ladies  afore  I  git  on  to 
the  sled,  which,"  —  at  that  moment  catching  sight 
of  the  mattress, —  "you  don't  mean  to  say  that 
that's  it !" 

"  Barb'ry  Aleshine,"  said  Mrs.  Leeks  from  under 
neath  her  great  woolen  comforter,  "  if  you  want 
to  get  your  lungs  friz,  you  'd  better  go  on  talkin'. 
Manners  is  manners,  but  they  can  wait  till  we  get 
to  the  bottom  of  the  hill." 

Notwithstanding  this  admonition,  I  noticed  that 
as  soon  as  the  two  parties  met,  both  Mrs.  Leeks 
and  Mrs.  Aleshine  advanced  and  shook  hands  with 
the  ladies  who  had  been  their  neighbors  under 
such  peculiar  circumstances,  and  that  Mrs.  Leeks 
herself  expressed  a  muffled  hope  that  they  might 
all  get  down  safely. 

I  now  pushed  the  mattress  which  was  to  serve 
as  our  sled  as  close  as  was  prudent  to  the  edge  of 


60  The  Dusantes. 

the  descent,  and  requested  the  party  to  seat  them 
selves  upon  it.  Without  hesitation  Mrs.  Leeks 
and  Mrs.  Aleshine  sat  down,  taking  Ruth  between 
them,  as  they  had  promised  to  do.  My  young  wife 
was  very  nervous,  but  the  cool  demeanor  of  her 
companions,  and  my  evident  belief  in  the  practi 
cability  of  the  plan,  gave  her  courage,  and  she 
quietly  took  her  seat.  The  younger  of  the  two 
strange  ladies  stepped  lightly  on  the  cushions,  and 
before  seating  herself  stood  up  for  a  good  look  at 
the  far-extending  bed  of  snow  over  which  we  were 
to  take  our  way.  The  prospect  did  not  appear  to  de 
ter  her,  and  she  sat  down  promptly  and  with  an  air 
that  seemed  to  say  that  she  anticipated  a  certain 
enjoyment  from  the  adventure.  The  elder  lady, 
however,  exhibited  very  different  emotions.  She 
shrank  back  from  the  cushions  towards  which  the 
gentleman  was  conducting  her,  and  turned  her  face 
away  from  the  declivity.  Her  companion  assured 
her  that  it  was  absolutely  necessary  that  we  should 
descend  from  the  mountain  in  this  way,  for  there 
was  no  other ;  and  asserting  his  belief  that  our 
slide  would  be  a  perfectly  safe  one,  he  gently 
drew  her  to  the  mattress  and  induced  her  to  sit 
down. 

I  now,  for  the  first  time,  noticed  that  the  gentle 
man  carried  under  one  arm,  and  covered  by  his 


The  Dmantes.  61 

long  cloak,  a  large  package  of  some  sort,  and  I 
immediately  said  to  him  :  "  It  will  be  very  impru 
dent  for  us  to  attempt  to  carry  any  of  our  prop 
erty  except  what  we  can  put  in  our  pockets  or 
wrap  around  us.  Everything  else  should  be  left 
here,  either  in  your  carriage  or  our  coach,  and  I 
have  no  fear  that  anything  will  be  lost.  But  even 
if  our  luggage  were  in  danger  of  being  molested 
we  cannot  afford  to  consider  it  under  circumstances 
such  as  these." 

"  My  dear  sir,"  said  the  gentleman,  speaking 
very  gravely,  "I  appreciate  the  hazards  of  our 
position  as  keenly  as  yourself.  Our  valises,  and 
all  the  light  luggage  which  we  had  with  us  in 
our  carriage,  I  have  left  there,  and  shall  not  give 
them  another  thought.  But  with  the  parcel  I 
hold  under  this  arm  I  cannot  part,  and  if  I  go 
down  the  mountain-side  on  these  cushions,  it 
must  go  with  me.  If  you  refuse  in  such  a  case  to 
allow  me  to  be  one  of  your  party,  I  must  remain 
behind,  and  endeavor  to  find  a  board  or  some 
thing  on  which  I  can  make  the  descent  of  the 
mountain." 

He  spoke  courteously,  but  with  an  air  of  decis 
ion  which  showed  me  that  it  would  be  of  no  use 
to  argue  with  him.  Besides,  there  was  no  time 
for  parleying ;  and  if  this  gentleman  chose  to 
6 


62  The  Dusantes. 

take  his  chances  with  but  one  arm  at  liberty,  it 
was  no  longer  my  affair.  I  therefore  desired  him 
to  sit  down,  and  I  arranged  the  company  so  that 
they  sat  back  to  back,  their  feet  drawn  up  to  the 
edge  of  the  mattress.  I  then  took  the  place  which 
had  been  reserved  for  me  as  steersman,  and  hav 
ing  tied  several  shawls  together,  end  to  end,  I 
passed  them  around  the  whole  of  us  under  our 
arms,  thus  binding  us  all  firmly  together.  I  felt 
that  one  of  our  greatest  dangers  would  be  that 
one  or  more  of  the  party  might  slip  from  the 
mattress  during  the  descent. 

When  all  was  ready  I  asked  the  gentleman, 
who,  with  the  elder  lady,  sat  near  me,  at  the  back 
of  the  mattress,  to  assist  in  giving  us  a  start  by 
pushing  outward  with  his  heels  while  I  thrust 
the  handle  of  my  wooden  shovel  into  the  crust 
and  thus  pushed  the  mattress  forward.  The  start 
ing  was  a  little  difficult,  but  in  a  minute  or  two 
we  had  pushed  the  mattress  partly  over  the  brink, 
and  then,  after  a  few  more  efforts,  we  began  to 
slide  downward. 

The  motion,  at  first  slow,  suddenly  became  quite 
rapid,  and  I  heard  behind  me  a  cry  or  exclama 
tion,  from  whom  I  knew  not,  but  I  felt  quite  sure 
it  did  not  come  from  any  of  our  party.  I  hoped 
to  be  able  to  make  some  use  of  my  shovel  in  the 


The  Dusantes.  6} 

guidance  of  our  unwieldy  raft  or  mattress-sled, 
but  I  soon  found  this  impossible,  and  down  we 
went  over  the  smooth,  hard-frozen  slope,  with 
nothing  to  direct  our  course  but  the  varying  un 
dulations  of  the  mountain-side.  Every  moment 
we  seemed  to  go  faster  and  faster,  and  soon  we 
began  to  revolve,  so  that  sometimes  I  was  in  front 
and  sometimes  behind.  Once,  when  passing  over 
a  very  smooth  sheet  of  snow,  we  fairly  spun 
around,  so  that  in  every  direction  feet  were  fly 
ing  out  from  a  common  center  and  heels  grating 
on  the  frozen  crust.  But  there  were  no  more 
cries  or  exclamations.  Each  one  of  us  grasped 
the  cordage  which  held  the  cushions  together,  and 
the  rapidity  of  the  motion  forced  us  almost  to 
hold  our  breath. 

Down  the  smooth,  white  slope  we  sped  as  a  bird 
skims  through  the  air.  It  seemed  to  me  as  if  we 
passed  over  miles  and  miles  of  snow.  Sometimes 
my  face  was  turned  down  the  mountain  where  the 
snow  surface  seemed  to  stretch  out  illimitably, 
and  then  it  was  turned  upward  towards  the  ap 
parently  illimitable  slopes  over  which  we  had 
passed. 

Presently,  my  position  now  being  in  front  of 
the  little  group  that  glanced  along  its  glittering 
way,  I  saw  at  some  distance  below  me  a  long  rise 


64  The  Dusantes. 

or  terrace  which  ran  along  the  monntain-side  for 
a  considerable  distance,  and  which  cut  off  our 
view  of  everything  below  us.  As  we  approached 
this  hillock  the  descent  became  much  more  grad 
ual  and  our  progress  slower,  and  at  last  I  began 
to  fear  that  our  acquired  velocity  would  not  be 
sufficient  to  carry  us  up  the  side  of  this  eleva 
tion,  and  so  enable  us  to  continue  our  descent.  I 
therefore  called  to  everybody  in  the  rear  to  kick 
out  vigorously,  and  with  my  shovel  I  endeavored 
to  assist  our  progress.  As  we  approached  the 
summit  of  the  elevation,  we  moved  slower  and 
slower.  I  became  very  anxious,  for,  should  we 
slide  backward,  we  might  find  it  difficult  or  im 
possible  to  get  ourselves  and  the  mattress  up  this 
little  hill.  But  the  gentleman  and  myself  worked 
valiantly,  and  as  for  Mrs.  Leeks  and  Mrs.  Ale- 
shine,  they  kicked  their  heels  through  the  frozen 
crust  with  such  energy  that  we  moved  sidewise 
almost  as  much  as  upward.  But  in  a  moment 
the  anxious  suspense  was  over,  and  we  rested  on 
the  ridge  of  the  long  hillock  with  the  mountain 
side  stretching  down  to  the  plain,  which  lay  not 
very  far  below  us. 

I  should  have  been  glad  to  remain  here  a  few 
minutes  to  regain  breath,  and  to  give  some  con 
sideration  to  the  rest  of  our  descent,  but  some  of 


The  Dusantes.  65 

those  behind  continued  to  push  —  the  mattress 
slid  over  the  edge  of  the  terrace,  and  down  again 
we  went.  Our  progress  now  was  not  so  rapid, 
but  it  was  very  much  more  unpleasant.  The 
snow  was  thinner  5  there  was  little  or  no  crust 
upon  it,  and  we  very  soon  reached  a  wide  extent 
of  exposed  turf  over  which  we  slid,  but  not  with 
out  a  good  deal  of  bumping  against  stones  and 
protuberances.  Then  there  was  another  sheet  of 
snow,  which  quickened  our  downward  impetus; 
and,  after  that,  the  snow  was  seen  only  in  occa 
sional  patches,  and  our  progress  continued  over  a 
long  slope  of  short,  partly  dried  grass,  which  was 
very  slippery,  and  over  which  we  passed  with 
considerable  quickness. 

I  wished  now  to  bring  our  uncouth  sled  to  a 
stop,  and  to  endeavor  to  make  the  rest  of  the 
descent  on  foot.  But  although  I  stuck  out  my 
heels  and  tried  to  thrust  the  handle  of  my  shovel 
into  the  ground,  it  was  of  no  use.  On  we  went, 
and  the  inequalities  of  the  surface  gave  an  irregu 
larity  of  motion  which  was  uncomfortable  and 
alarming.  We  turned  to  this  side  and  that,  we 
bounced  and  bumped,  and  the  rawhide  ropes, 
which  must  have  been  greatly  frayed  and  cut  by 
the  snow  crust,  now  gave  way  in  several  places, 
and  I  knew  that  the  mattress  would  soon  separate 


66  The  Dusantes. 

into  its  original  cushions,  if  indeed  they  still 
could  be  called  cushions.  Fearing  increased  dan 
ger  should  we  now  continue  bound  together  in  a 
bunch,  I  jerked  apart  the  shawl-knot  under  my 
arms,  and  the  next  moment,  it  seemed  to  me, 
there  was  a  general  dissolution  of  our  connection 
with  each  other.  Fortunately,  we  were  now  near 
the  bottom  of  the  slope,  for  while  some  of  us  stuck 
fast  to  the  cushions,  others  rolled  over,  or  slid, 
independent  of  any  protection;  while  I,  being 
thrown  forward  on  my  feet,  actually  ran  down 
hill!  I  had  just  succeeded  in  stopping  myself, 
when  down  upon  me  came  the  rest  of  the  com 
pany,  all  prostrate  in  some  position  or  other. 

And  now  from  an  unwieldy  mass  of  shawls 
came  a  cry : 

"  O  Albert  Dusante  !  Where  are  you  ?  Lu 
cille  !  Lucille  ! " 

Instantly  sprang  to  one  foot  good  Mrs.  Ale- 
shine,  her  other  foot  being  entangled  in  a  mass  of 
shawls  which  dragged  behind  her.  Her  bonnet 
was  split  open  and  mashed  down  over  her  eyes. 
In  her  left  hand  she  waved  a  piece  of  yellow  flan 
nel,  which  in  her  last  mad  descent  she  had  torn 
from  some  part  of  the  person  of  Mrs.  Leeks,  and  in 
the  other  a  bunch  of  stout  dead  weeds,  which  she 
had  seized  and  pulled  up  by  the  roots  as  she  had 


The  Dusanles.  6j 

passed  them.  Her  dress  was  ripped  open  down 
her  rotund  back,  and  the  earth  from  the  weed 
roots  had  bespattered  her  face.  From  the  midst 
of  this  dilapidation  her  round  eyes  sparkled  with 
excitement.  Hopping  on  one  foot,  the  shawls  and 
a  part  of  a  cushion  dragging  behind  her,  she 
shouted : 

"  The  Dusantes  !     They  are  the  Dusantes  ! » 

Then  pitching  forward  on  her  knees  before  the 
two  strange  ladies,  who  had  now  tumbled  into 
each  other's  arms,  she  cried  : 

"  Oh,  which  is  Emily,  and  which  is  Lucille  ? " 

I  had  rushed  towards  Ruth,  who  had  clung  to  a 
cushion,  and  was  now  sitting  upon  it,  when  Mrs. 
Leeks,  who  was  close  beside  her,  arose  to  her  feet 
and  stood  upright.  One  foot  was  thrust  through 
her  own  bonnet,  and  her  clothes  gave  evidence  of 
the  frenzy  and  power  of  Mrs.  Aleshine's  grasp, 
but  her  mierwwas  dignified  and  her  aspect  stately. 

"  Barb'ry  Aleshine  ! "  she  exclaimed,  "  if  them 
Dusantes  has  dropped  down  from  heaven  at  your 
very  feet,  can't  you  give  7em  a  minute  to  feel  their 
ribs  and  see  if  their  legs  and  arms  is  broken  ?  " 

The  younger  lady  now  turned  her  head  towards 
Mrs.  Aleshine.  "  I  am  Lucille,"  she  said. 

In  a  moment  the  good  woman's  arms  were 
around  her  neck.  "  I  always  liked  you  the  best  of 


68  The  Dusantes. 

the  two/'  she  whispered  into  the  ear  of  the  aston 
ished  young  lady. 

Having  found  that  Ruth  was  unhurt,  I  ran  to 
the  assistance  of  the  others.  The  gentleman  had 
just  arisen  from  a  cushion,  upon  which,  lying  flat 
on  his  back,  he  had  slid  over  the  grass,  still  hold 
ing  under  one  arm  the  package  from  which  he  had 
refused  to  part.  I  helped  him  to  raise  the  elder 
lady  to  her  feet.  She  had  been  a  good  deal  shaken, 
and  much  frightened,  but  although  a  little  bruised, 
she  had  received  no  important  injury. 

I  went  to  fill  a  leather  pocket-cup  from  a  brook 
near  by,  and  when  I  returned  I  found  the  gen 
tleman  standing,  confronted  by  Mrs.  Leeks,  Mrs. 
Aleshine,  and  Ruth,  while  his  own  companions 
were  regarding  the  group  with  eager  interest. 

"  Yes,"  he  was  saying,  "  my  name  is  Dusante, 
but  why  do  you  ask  at  this  moment  ?  Why  do 
you  show  such  excited  concern  on  the  subject?" 

"Why?"  exclaimed  Mrs.  Leeks.  "I  will  tell 
you  why,  sir.  My  name  is  Mrs.  Leeks,  and  this  is 
Mrs.  Aleshine,  and  if  you  are  the  Mr.  Dusante 
with  the  house  on  the  desert  island,  this  is  the 
Mrs.  Craig  who  was  married  in  that  very  house, 
and  the  gentleman  here  with  the  water  is  Mr. 
Craig,  who  wrote  you  the  letter,  which  I  hope  you 
got.  And  if  that  is  n't  reason  enough  for  our 


The  Dus antes.  69 

wanting  to  know  if  you  are  Mr.  Dusante,  I  'd  like 
to  be  told  what  more  there  could  be  !  " 

"It 's  them  !  Of  course  it's  them  !"  cried  Mrs. 
Aleshine.  "  I  had  a  f  eelin'  while  we  were  scootin' 
down-hill  that  they  was  near  and  dear  to  us, 
though  exactly  why  and  how,  I  did  n't  know. 
And  she 's  told  me  she 's  Lucille,  and  of  course  the 
other  must  be  Emily,  though  what  relations " 

"Am  I  to  understand/'  interrupted  the  gentle 
man,  looking  with  earnest  animation  from  one  to 
the  other  of  us,  "  that  these  are  the  good  people 
who  inhabited  my  house  on  the  island  ? " 

"  The  very  ones  ! "  cried  Mrs.  Aleshine.  "  And 
what  relation  are  you  to  Emily?  and  Lucille  to 
her  f » 

The  gentleman  stepped  backward  and  laid  down 
the  package  which  he  had  held  under  his  arm,  and 
advancing  towards  me  with  outstretched  hands, 
and  with  tears  starting  to  his  eyes,  he  exclaimed : 

"And  this  man  then,  to  whom  I  owe  so  much, 
is  Mr.  Craig !  " 

"  Owe  me  !  "  I  said.  "  It  is  to  you  that  we  owe 
our  very  lives,  and  our  escape  from  death  in  mid- 
ocean." 

"  Do  not  speak  of  it,"  he  said,  shaking  his  head 
with  a  sorrowful  expression  on  his  face.  "You 
owe  me  nothing.  I  would  to  Heaven  it  were  not 


jo  The  Dusantes. 

so  !  But  we  will  not  talk  of  that,  now.  And  this 
is  Mrs.  Craig,"  he  continued,  taking  Ruth  by  the 
hand,  — "  the  fair  lady  whose  nuptials  were  cele 
brated  in  my  house.  And  Mrs.  Leeks,  and  Mrs. 
Aleshine."  As  he  spoke  he  shook  hands  with 
each.  "  How  I  have  longed  to  meet  you !  I  have 
thought  of  you  every  day  since  I  returned  to  my 
island,  and  discovered  that  you  had  been — I  wish 
I  could  say — my  guests.  And  where  is  the  rev 
erend  gentleman?  And  the  three  mariners?  I 
hope  that  nothing  has  befallen  them  !" 

"  Alas  !  — for  three  of  them  at  least,"  ejaculated 
Mrs.  Aleshine ;  "  they  have  left  us,  but  they  are 
all  right.  And  now,  sir,  if  you  could  tell  us  what 
relation  you  are  to  Emily,  and  what  Lucille " 

"  Barbery ! w  cried  Mrs.  Leeks,  making  a  dash 
towards  her  friend,  "  can't  you  give  the  man  a 
minute  to  breathe  ?  Don't  you  see  he  's  so  dum- 
flustered  that  he  hardly  knows  who  he  is  him 
self  !  If  them  two  women  was  to  sink  down  dead 
with  hunger  and  hard  slidin'  right  afore  your  very 
eyes  while  you  was  askin'  what  relation  they  was  to 
each  other  and  to  him,  it  would  no  more  ?n  serve 
you  right !  We  'd  better  be  seein'  if  anythin'  >s 
the  matter  with  ?em,  and  what  we  can  do  for'em." 

At  this  moment  the  younger  of  Mr.  Dusante's 
ladies  quickly  stepped  forward.  "  O  Mrs.  Craig, 


The  Dm  antes.  77 

Mrs.  Leeks,  and  Mrs.  Aleshine!"  she  exclaimed, 
"  I  'm  just  dying  to  know  all  about  you ! " 

"  And  which,  contrariwise/'  cried  Mrs.  Aleshine, 
"  is  the  same  with  us,  exactly." 

"  And  of  all  places  in  the  world/7  continued  the 
young  lady,  "  that  we  should  meet  here ! " 

No  one  could  have  been  more  desirous  than  I 
was  to  know  all  about  these  Dusantes,  and  to  dis 
cuss  the  strange  manner  of  our  meeting,  but  I  saw 
that  Kuth  was  looking  very  pale  and  faint,  and 
that  the  elder  Dusante  lady  had  sat  down  again 
upon  the  ground,  as  though  obliged  to  do  so  by 
sheer  exhaustion,  and  I  therefore  hailed  with  a 
double  delight  the  interruption  of  further  explana 
tions  by  the  appearance  of  two  men  on  horseback 
who  came  galloping  towards  us. 

They  belonged  to  the  house  which  I  had  noticed 
from  the  road  above,  and  one  of  them  had  seen  our 
swift  descent  down  the  mountain-side.  At  first  he 
had  thought  the  black  object  he  saw  sliding  over 
the  snow  slopes  was  a  rock  or  mass  of  underbrush, 
but  his  keen  eye  soon  told  him  that  it  was  a  group 
of  human  beings,  and  summoning  a  companion, 
he  had  set  out  for  the  foot  of  the  mountain  as 
soon  as  horses  could  be  caught  and  saddled. 

The  men  were  much  surprised  when  they  heard 
the  details  of  our  adventure,  but  as  it  was  quite 


J2  The  Diisantes. 

plain  that  some  members  of  our  party  needed 
immediate  nourishment  and  attention,  the  ques 
tions  and  explanations  were  made  very  short. 
The  men  dismounted  from  their  horses,  and 
the  elder  Dusante  lady  was  placed  upon  one  of 
them,  one  man  leading  the  animal  and  the  other 
supporting  the  lady.  Ruth  mounted  the  other 
horse,  and  I  walked  by  her  to  assist  her  in  keep 
ing  her  seat,  but  she  held  fast  to  the  high  pom 
mel  of  the  saddle  and  got  on  very  well.  Mr. 
Dusante  took  his  younger  companion  on  one  arm, 
and  his  package  under  the  other,  while  Mrs.  Leeks, 
having  relieved  her  foot  from  the  encircling  bon 
net,  and  Mrs.  Aleshine,  now  free  from  the  entan 
gling  shawls,  followed  in  the  rear.  The  men 
offered  to  come  back  with  the  horses  for  them  if 
they  would  wait;  but  the  two  women  declared 
that  they  were  quite  able  to  walk,  and  intended 
to  do  no  waiting,  and  they  trudged  vigorously 
after  us.  The  sun  was  now  high,  and  the  air 
down  here  was  quite  different  from  that  of  the 
mountain-side,  being  pleasant  and  almost  warm. 
The  men  said  that  the  snows  above  would  prob 
ably  soon  melt,  as  it  was  much  too  early  in  the 
season  for  snow  to  lie  long  on  these  lower  sides 
of  the  mountains. 

Our  way  lay  over  an  almost  level  plain  for  about 


The  D  its  antes.  73 

a  mile.  A  portion  of  it  was  somewhat  rough,  so 
that  when  we  reached  the  low  house  to  which  we 
were  bound,  we  were  all  very  glad  indeed  to  get 
there.  The  house  belonged  to  the  two  men,  who 
owned  a  small  ranch  here.  One  of  them  was  mar 
ried,  and  his  wife  immediately  set  herself  to  work 
to  attend  to  our  needs.  Her  home  was  small, 
its  rooms  few,  and  her  larder  very  plain  in  qual 
ity;  but  everything  she  had  was  placed  at  our 
disposal.  Her  own  bed  was  given  to  the  elder 
Dusante  lady,  who  took  immediate  possession  of 
it ;  and  after  a  quickly  prepared  but  plentiful 
meal  of  fried  pork,  corn-bread,  and  coffee,  the  rest 
of  us  stretched  ourselves  out  to  rest  wherever  we 
could  find  a  place.  Before  lying  down,  however, 
I  had,  at  Ruth's  earnest  solicitation,  engaged  one 
of  the  men  to  ride  to  the  railroad  station  to  inquire 
about  Mr.  Euderton,  and  to  inform  him  of  our 
safety.  By  taking  a  route  which  ran  parallel  with 
the  mountain  chain,  but  at  some  distance  from  it, 
the  station,  the  man  said,  could  be  reached  with 
out  encountering  snow. 

None  of  us  had  had  proper  rest  during  the  past 
two  nights,  and  we  slept  soundly  until  dark,  when 
we  were  aroused  to  partake  of  supper.  All  of  us, 
except  the  elder  Dusante  lady,  who  preferred  to 
remain  in  bed,  gathered  around  the  table.  After 
7 


J4  ^e  Dux  antes. 

supper  a  large  fire,  principally  of  brush-wood, 
was  built  upon  the  hearth ;  and  with  the  bright 
blaze,  two  candles,  and  a  lamp,  the  low  room  ap 
peared  light  and  cheery.  We  drew  up  about 
the  fire  —  for  the  night  was  cool — on  whatever 
chairs,  stools,  or  boxes  we  could  find,  and  no 
sooner  had  we  all  seated  ourselves  than  Mrs. 
Aleshine  exclaimed: 

"Now,  Mr.  Dusante,  it  ain't  in  the  power  of 
mortal  man,  nor  woman  neither, —  an'  if  put  the 
other  way  it  might  be  stronger, —  to  wait  any 
longer  before  knowin'  what  relation  Lucille  is  to 
Emily,  and  you  to  them,  an7  all  about  that  house 
of  yours  on  the  island.  If  I  'd  blown  up  into  bits 
this  day  through  holdin'  in  my  wantin'  to  know, 
I  should  n't  have  wondered !  An'  if  it  had  n't 
been  for  hard  sleep,  I  don't  believe  I  could  have 
held  in  nohow ! " 

"That  's  my  mind  exactly,"  said  Mrs.  Leeks; 
"  and  though  I  know  there  's  a  time  for  all  things, 
and  don't  believe  in  crowdin'  questions  on  played- 
out  people,  I  do  think,  Mr.  Dusante,  that  if  I 
could  have  caught  up  with  you  when  we  was 
comin'  over  here,  I  'd  have  asked  you  to  speak 
out  on  these  p'ints.  But  you  're  a  long-legged 
walker,  which  Mrs.  Aleshine  is  not,  and  it  would 
n't  have  done  to  leave  her  behind." 


The  Dm  antes.  75 

"  Which  she  would  n't  ?a'  been/'  said  Mrs.  Ale- 
shine,  "  long  legs  or  short." 

Ruth  and  I  added  our  entreaties  that  Mr.  Du- 
sante  should  tell  his  story,  and  the  good  ranch 
man  and  his  wife  said  that  if  there  was  anything 
to  be  done  in  the  story-telling  line  they  were  in 
for  it,  strong  ;  and  quitting  their  work  of  clearing 
away  supper  things,  they  brought  an  old  hair 
trunk  from  another  room  and  sat  down  just  be 
hind  Mrs.  Leeks. 

The  younger  Dusante  lady,  who,  having  been 
divested  of  her  wraps,  her  veil,  and  the  woolen 
shawl  that  had  been  tied  over  her  head,  had 
proved  to  be  a  very  pretty  girl  with  black  eyes, 
here  declared  that  it  had  been  her  intention  at 
the  first  opportunity  to  get  us  to  tell  our  story, 
but  as  we  had  asked  first,  she  supposed  we  ought 
to  be  satisfied  first. 

"  I  do  not  wish,  my  good  friends,"  said  Mr. 
Dusante,  "to  delay  for  a  moment  longer  than 
necessary  your  very  pardonable  curiosity  con 
cerning  me  and  my  family;  and  I  must  say  at 
the  same  time  that,  although  your  letter,  sir, 
gave  me  a  very  clear  account  of  your  visit  to  my 
island,  there  are  many  things  which  naturally 
could  not  be  contained  within  the  limits  of  a 
letter,  and  about  which  I  am  most  anxious  to 


76  The  Diis  antes. 

make  inquiries.  But  these  I  will  reserve  until 
my  own  narration  is  finished. 

"  My  name  is  Albert  Dusante.  It  may  interest 
you  to  know  that  my  father  was  a  Frenchman 
and  my  mother  an  American  lady  from  New  Eng 
land.  I  was  born  in  France,  but  have  lived  very 
little  in  that  country,  and  for  a  great  part  of  my 
life  have  been  a  merchant  in  Honolulu.  For  the 
past  few  years,  however,  I  have  been  enabled  to 
free  myself  in  a  great  degree  from  the  trammels 
of  business,  and  to  devote  myself  to  the  pursuits 
of  a  man  of  leisure.  I  have  never  married,  and 
this  young  lady  is  my  sister." 

"  Then  what  relation,"  began  Mrs.  Aleshine,  "is 
she  to ?» 

At  this  moment  the  hand  of  Mrs.  Leeks,  falling 
heavily  into  the  lap  of  the  speaker,  stopped  this 
question,  and  Mr.  Dusante  proceeded : 

"  Our  parents  died  when  Lucille  was  an  infant, 
and  we  have  no  near  blood  relations." 

At  this,  the  faces  of  both  Mrs.  Aleshine  and  Mrs. 
Leeks  assumed  expressions  as  if  they  had  each  just 
received  a  letter  superscribed  in  an  unknown  hand, 
and  were  wondering  who  it  could  possibly  be  from. 

"  The  lady  who  is  now  resting  in  the  adjoining 
room,"  continued  Mr.  Dusante,  "is  a  dear  friend 
who  has  been  adopted  by  me  as  a  mother.'7 


The  Dusantes.  77 

"  Upon  my  word  ! "  burst  from  Mrs.  Leeks  and 
Mrs.  Aleshine,  in  as  much  unison  of  time  and 
tone  as  if  the  words  had  been  a  response  in  a 
church  service,  while  Miss  Lucille  leaned  back 
against  the  wall  near  which  she  sat,  and  laughed 
gleefully.  Mr.  Dusante,  however,  continued  his 
statements  with  the  same  quiet  gravity  with  which 
he  had  begun. 

"This  lady  was  a  dear  friend  of  my  mother, 
although  younger  than  she.  I  adopted  her  as  a 
mother  to  my  little  orphan  sister,  and,  conse 
quently,  placed  her  in  the  same  maternal  relation 
to  myself,  doing  this  with  much  earnest  satisfac 
tion,  for  I  hoped  to  be  able  to  return,  as  a  son, 
something  of  the  tender  care  and  affection  which 
she  would  bestow  on  Lucille  as  a  daughter." 

"  And  she  is  Emily  ? "  cried  Mrs.  Aleshine. 

"  She  adopted  our  name,"  answered  the  speaker, 
"  and  she  is  Mrs.  Emily  Dusante." 

"  And  she  is  your  adopted  mother  f  "  said  Mrs. 
Aleshine. 

"  Adopted  mother  ! "  ejaculated  Mrs.  Leeks. 

"Yes,"  answered  Mr.  Dusante. 

"And  that  is  the  only  relation  she  is  to  you 
two  ? "  said  Mrs.  Leeks. 

"And  you  to  her?"  added  Mrs.  Aleshine. 

"  Most  assuredly,"  answered  Mr.  Dusante. 


j8  The  Dusantes. 

Here  Mrs.  Leeks  leaned  back  in  her  chair,  folded 
her  hands  in  her  lap,  and  ejaculated :  "  Well,  well ! " 
and  then  allowed  her  face  to  assume  a  rigid  inten 
tion  of  having  nothing  more  to  say  at  the  present 
moment. 

"One  thing  is  certain,"  remarked  Mrs.  Aleshine, 
in  a  tone  which  indicated  that  she  did  not  care 
who  heard  her,  "  I  always  liked  Lucille  the  best ! " 

At  this  Ruth  and  I  exchanged  smiles  with  Miss 
Lucille,  and  Mr.  Dusante  proceeded : 

"  I  do  not  wish  to  occupy  too  much  of  your  time 
with  our  personal  affairs,  and  will  therefore  state 
that  the  island  on  which  you  found  refuge,  and 
where  I  wish,  most  heartily,  I  had  been  present  to 
act  as  host,  was  bought  by  me  as  a  retreat  from 
the  annoyances  of  business  and  the  exactions  of 
society.  I  built  there  a  good  house " 

"  Which  it  truly  was,"  said  Mrs.  Aleshine,  "  with 
fixtures  in  it  for  water,  and  letting  it  off,  which  I 
never  saw  in  a  house  so  far  out  of  town." 

"I  furnished  it  suitably,"  said  Mr.  Dusante. 
"We  had  books  and  music,  and  for  several  years 
we  passed  vacations  there  which  were  both  enjoy 
able  and  profitable.  But  of  late  my  sister  has 
found  the  place  lonely,  and  we  have  traveled  a 
good  deal,  making  intermittent  and  often  short 
visits  to  the  island. 


The  Dmantes.  79 

"As  I  never  cared  to  leave  any  one  on  that 
lonely  spot  during  our  absences  from  it,  I  arranged 
a  gateway  of  bars  across  the  only  opening  in  the 
reef,  with  the  intention  of  preventing  maraud 
ing  visits  from  fishing-boats  or  other  small  craft 
which  might  be  passing  that  way.  As  the  island 
was  out  of  the  ordinary  track  of  vessels,  I  did  not 
imagine  that  my  bars  would  ever  prove  an  obstacle 
to  unfortunate  castaways  who  might  seek  a  refuge 
there." 

"  Which  they  did  n't/7  remarked  Mrs.  Aleshine, 
"  for  under  we  bobbed." 

"  I  never  exactly  understood/7  said  Mr.  Dusante, 
"and  1  hope  to  have  it  explained  to  me  in  due 
time,  how  you  passed  my  bars  without  removing 
them,  and  I  have  had  a  sore  weight  upon  my 
conscience  since  I  discovered  that  shipwrecked 
persons,  fleeing  to  my  house  from  the  perils  of 
the  sea,  should  have  found  those  inhospitable  bars 
in  their  way " 

"  Which  is  a  weight  you  might  as  well  cast  off 
and  be  done  with  it,"  said  Mrs.  Leeks,  her  deep- 
set  notions  on  the  rights  of  property  obliging  her 
to  speak ;  "for  if  a  man  has  n't  a  right  to  lock  up 
his  house  when  he  goes  away  and  leaves  it,  I  don't 
know  what  rights  anybody  has  about  anything. 
Me,  or  Mrs.  Aleshine,  or  anybody  else  here  who 


8o  The  Dusantes. 

has  a  house,  might  just  as  well  go  off  travelin'  or  to 
town  visitin'  and  leave  our  front  door  unlocked 
and  the  yard  gate  swingin'  on  its  hinges,  because 
we  was  afraid  that  some  tramp  or  other  body 
with  no  house  or  home  might  come  along  and  not 
be  able  to  get  in  and  make  himself  comfortable. 
Your  business,  sir,  when  you  left  that  house  and 
all  your  belongings  on  that  island,  was  to  leave 
everything  tight  and  safe,  and  the  business  of 
people  sailin'  in  ships  was  to  go  on  their  proper 
way  and  not  be  runnin'  into  each  other.  And  if 
these  last  mentioned  did  n't  see  fit  to  do  that 
and  so  got  into  trouble,  they  should  have  gone  to 
some  island  where  there  were  people  to  attend 
to  'em,  just  as  the  tramps  should  go  to  the  poor- 
house.  And  this  is  what  we  would  have  done  — 
not  meanin'  the  poor-house  —  if  we  had  n't  been 
so  over  long-headed  as  to  get  into  a  leaky  boat, 
which,  I  wish  it  understood,  is  sayin'  nothin' 
against  Mr.  Craig." 

"  That 's  true,"  said  Mrs.  Aleshine,  "  for  nobody 
has  got  a  right  to  complain  that  a  fellow-bein' 
locks  his  own  door  after  him.  But  it  does  seem 
to  me,  sir,  that  in  such  scattered  neighborhoods 
as  your  island  is  in,  it  might  be  a  good  thing  to 
leave  something  to  eat  and  drink  —  perhaps  in  a 
bottle  or  in  a  tin  pail  —  at  the  outside  of  your 


The  Dus antes.  Si 

bars  for  them  as  might  come  along  shipwrecked 
and  not  be  able  to  get  inside  on  account  of  bein7 
obliged  to  come  in  a  boat,  an7  not  as  we  did  j  an' 
so  when  they  found  they'd  have  to  go  on,  they 
might  have  somethin7  to  keep  up  their  strength 
till  they  got  to  another  house." 

"Now,  Barb'ry  Aleshine,"  said  Mrs.  Leeks, 
"when  you  start  off  on  a  journey  to  Japan  or 
any  other  place  an7  leave  mince-pies  and  buttered 
toast  a-stickin'  on  the  p'ints  of  your  palm's  for 
tramps  that  might  come  along  and  need  ?em,  you 
can  do  that  kind  of  talkin'.  But  as  that  time 
has  n't  come,  let  7s  hear  the  rest  of  Mr.  Dusante's 
story." 

"  When  I  first  visited  my  island  this  year,"  con 
tinued  the  narrator,  "  we  made  but  a  short  stay, 
as  we  were  all  desirous  of  taking  a  somewhat  ex 
tended  sea  voyage  in  my  steam  yacht.  We  visited 
several  places  of  interest,  and  when  we  returned, 
just  six  weeks  ago  to-day " 

"  Just  one  week,  lackin7  a  day,"  exclaimed  Mrs. 
Leeks,  "  after  we  left  that  spot !  " 

"  If  I  7d  V  knowed,"  said  Mrs.  Aleshine,  rising 
to  her  feet,  "  that  you  7d  be  back  so  soon,  I  7d  'a' 
made  them  sailor  men  live  on  fish,  I  7d  ?a'  eat 
garden  truck  myself,  and  I  'd  be  bound  I  'd  'a7 
made  the  flour  hold  out  for  six  days  more  for  the 


82  The  Dusantes. 

rest  of  7em;  if  I  ?d  ?a7  had  to  work  my  fingers  to 
the  skin  and  bone  to  do  it ! n  Then  she  sat  down 
solemnly. 

"  When  we  returned,"  continued  Mr.  Dusante, 
"  I  was  pleased  to  find  my  bars  intact ;  and  when 
these  were  unlocked,  and  the  boat  from  our  yacht 
went  through  with  ourselves  and  our  servants,  it 
was  very  agreeable  to  notice  the  good  order  which 
seemed  to  prevail  everywhere.  As  we  passed  from 
the  wharf  to  the  house,  not  even  fallen  boughs 
or  weeds  were  seen  to  indicate  that  we  had  been 
away  from  the  place  for  more  than  two  months. 
When  we  entered  the  house,  my  mother  and  sister 
immediately  ascended  to  their  chambers,  and  when 
the  windows  had  been  opened  I  heard  them  from 
above  calling  to  each  other  and  remarking  upon 
the  freshness  and  cleanliness  of  the  rooms.  I  went 
to  my  library,  and  when  I  had  thrown  open  the 
window  I  was  struck  with  the  somewhat  peculiar 
air  of  order  which  seemed  to  obtain  in  the  room. 
The  books  stood  upon  their  shelves  with  a  remark 
able  regularity,  and  the  chairs  and  other  furniture 
were  arranged  with  a  precision  which  impressed 
me  as  unusual.  In  a  moment,  sir,  I  saw  your 
letter  upon  the  table  addressed  to  me.  Greatly 
astonished,  I  opened  and  read  it. 

"  When  I  had  finished  it,  my  amazement  was 


The  Du&antes.  83 

great  indeed  j  but  obeying  an  instant  impulse,  I 
stepped  into  the  dining-room  which  a  servant  had 
opened,  and  took  the  ginger- jar  from  the  mantel 
piece.  When  I  lifted  from  it  the  little  brown-paper 
parcel,  and  beneath  it  saw  the  money  which  had 
been  mentioned  in  the  letter,  you  may  imagine 
the  condition  of  my  mind.  I  did  not  take  out  the 
money,  nor  count  it;  but  covering  it  again  with 
the  paper  parcel,  which  I  believe  contained  fish 
hooks,  and  with  the  jar  in  my  hands,  I  returned  to 
the  library,  where  I  sat  down  to  ponder  upon  these 
most  astounding  revelations.  While  so  doing,  my 
mother  and  sister  hastily  entered  the  room.  Lu 
cille  declared  in  an  excited  manner  that  she  be 
lieved  that  the  brownies  or  some  other  fairies  had 
been  there  while  we  were  away  and  had  kept  the 
house  in  order.  The  whole  place  was  actually 
cleaner,  she  said,  than  when  we  left  it.  She  had 
taken  down  a  thin  dress  from  her  closet,  and 
it  positively  looked  as  if  it  had  just  come  from 
the  hand  of  a  laundress,  with  the  ruffles  ironed 
smoother  and  more  evenly  than  they  had  ever 
been  since  it  was  first  stitched  together.  l  Albert/ 
said  my  mother,  her  face  pale,  '  there  has  been 
somebody  in  this  house  ! '  Then  she  went  on  to 
say  that  the  windows,  which  were  left  unwashed 
because  we  went  away  in  somewhat  of  a  hurry, 


84  The  Dux  antes. 

were  as  bright  and  clean  as  if  the  maids  had  just 
been  rubbing  them ;  the  floors  and  furniture  were 
cleaner  and  freer  from  dust  than  they  had  ever 
been  before ;  and  the  whole  house  looked  as  if  we 
had  just  left  it  yesterday.  *  In  fact/  she  said,  '  it 
is  unnaturally  clean  ! '  * 

During  this  part  of  Mr.  Dusante's  story,  Mrs. 
Leeks  and  Mrs.  Aleshine  sat  very  quiet,  with  an 
air  of  sedate  humility  upon  their  faces;  but  I 
could  see  by  the  proud  light  in  their  eyes  that 
they  felt  their  superiority  to  ordinary  women, 
although  they  were  properly  resolved  not  to  show 
such  feeling, 

"At  that  moment,"  continued  Mr.  Dusante,  "a 
servant  came  hurrying  into  the  room,  and  informed 
us  that  the  flour  was  all  gone,  and  that  there  was 
scarcely  anything  in  the  pantries  to  eat.  At  this 
my  mother  and  my  sister,  who  knew  that  an  abun 
dance  of  provisions  had  been  left  in  the  house, 
looked  at  each  other  aghast.  But  before  they 
could  express  their  consternation  in  words,  I  ad 
dressed  them.  t  My  dear  mother/  said  I,  l  and  Lu 
cille,  there  truly  has  been  some  one  in  this  house. 
By  this  letter  I  am  informed  that  for  several  weeks 
eight  persons  have  lived  here  under  this  roof  j  a 
marriage  has  been  solemnized,  and  the  happy 
couple  have  gone  forth  from  our  doors.  These 


The  Dittanies.  85 

persons  have  eaten  our  food,  they  have  made  use 
of  our  property,  and  this  has  been  their  tempo 
rary  home.  But  they  are  good  people,  honest  and 
true-hearted,  for  they  have  left  the  house  in  better 
order  than  they  found  it,  and.  more  than  the  price 
of  all  they  have  consumed  is  in  that  ginger- jar.' 
And,  thereupon,  I  read  them  your  letter,  sir. 

"I  cannot  undertake  to  describe  the  wonder 
and  absorbing  interest  with  which  this  letter  filled 
our  minds.  All  needful  stores  were  brought  ashore 
from  the  yacht,  which  lay  outside  the  reef,  and  we 
began  our  usual  life  on  the  island ;  but  none  of 
the  occupations  or  recreations  in  which  we  for 
merly  employed  our  time  now  possessed  any  at 
tractions  for  us.  Our  minds  were  filled  with 
thoughts  of  the  persons  who  had  been  so  strangely 
living  in  our  house;  and  our  conversation  was 
mainly  made  up  of  surmises  as  to  what  sort  of 
people  they  were,  whether  or  not  we  should  ever 
see  them,  and  similar  suppositions." 

"  Yes,  indeed  !  "  exclaimed  Miss  Lucille,  "  I 
thought  of  you  by  day  and  by  night,  and  pic 
tured  you  all  in  various  ways,  but  never  as  you 
really  are.  Sometimes  I  used  to  think  that  the 
boat  in  which  you  went  away  had  been  sunk  in  a 
storm  in  which  you  were  all  drowned,  and  that 
perhaps  your  ghosts  would  come  back  and  live 
8 


86  The  Dusantes. 

in  our  house,  and  sleep  in  our  beds,  and  clean 
our  windows,  and  wash  and  iron  our  clothes,  and 
do  all  sorts  of  things  in  the  night." 

"  Goodnessful,  gracious  me ! "  cried  Mrs.  Ale- 
shine,  "  don't  talk  that  way !  The  idea  of  bein'  a 
cold  ghost,  goin'  about  in  the  dark,  is  worse  than 
slidin'  down  a  snow  mountain,  even  if  you  had  to 
do  it  on  the  bare  of  your  back." 

"  Barb'ry ! "  said  Mrs.  Leeks,  severely. 

"The  idea  is  jus7  as  chillin',"  replied  her  un 
daunted  friend. 

"  Two  things  connected  with  this  matter,"  con 
tinued  Mr.  Dusante,  "weighed  heavily  on  my 
mind.  One  of  these  I  have  already  mentioned  — 
the  cruel  inhospitality  of  the  barred  entrance." 

I  had  refrained  from  adding  to  the  interrup 
tions  to  Mr.  Dusante's  narrative,  but  I  now  felt 
impelled  to  assure  the  gentleman,  on  behalf  of 
myself  and  wife,  that  we  shared  the  opinions 
of  Mrs.  Leeks  and  Mrs.  Aleshine,  and  felt  that 
he  could  in  no  way  be  blamed  for  thus  protect 
ing  his  private  property. 

"You  are  very  good,"  said  Mr.  Dusante,  "but 
I  will  say  here  that  there  are  now  no  bars  to  that 
entrance.  I  have  left  some  people  on  the  island, 
who  will  take  care  of  my  property  and  succor 
any  unfortunate  castaways  who  may  arrive  there. 


The  Diisantes.  8j 

The  other  matter  to  which  I  alluded  was,  however, 
the  heavier  load  which  oppressed  me.  This  was 
the  money  in  the  ginger- jar.  I  could  not  endure 
to  reflect  that  I  had  been  paid  actual  money  for 
the  hospitality  I  would  have  been  so  glad  to  offer 
to  you  poor  shipwrecked  people.  Every  sentiment 
of  my  being  rebelled  against  such  a  thing.  I  was 
grieved.  I  was  ashamed.  At  last  I  determined 
I  would  bear  no  longer  the  ignominy  of  this  brand 
of  inhospitality,  and  that,  with  the  ginger- jar  in 
my  hand,  I  would  search  over  the  world,  if  neces 
sary,  for  the  persons  who  in  my  absence  had  paid 
board  to  me,  and  return  to  them  the  jar  with  its 
contents  uncounted  and  untouched.  Your  letter 
informed  me  of  the  island  to  which  you  were 
bound,  and  if  I  did  not  find  you  there  I  could 
discover  to  what  port  you  had  taken  your  de 
parture.  There  I  could  make  further  inquiries, 
and  so  follow  you.  When  I  proposed  this  plan 
to  my  family  they  agreed  to  it  instantly,  for 
their  interest  in  the  matter  was  almost  as  great 
as  mine  5  and  in  a  day  or  two  we  started  on  our 
quest. 

"  I  easily  traced  you  to  San  Francisco,  and 
found  the  hotel  at  which  you  had  stopped.  Here 
I  obtained  fresh  news  of  you,  and  learned  that 
you  had  started  East,  and  that  the  destination  of 


88  The  Dusantes. 

the  party  was  believed  to  be  Philadelphia.  I  had 
hoped  that  I  should  meet  with  you  before  you  left 
California  $  but  supposing  that  by  that  time  you 
had  reached  your  destination,  or  were,  at  least,  far 
on  your  way,  I  yielded  to  the  solicitations  of  my 
sister  and  made  some  excursions  in  California,  in 
tending  then  to  follow  you  to  Philadelphia  and  there 
to  advertise  for  Mr.  Craig,  if  he  could  not  otherwise 
be  found.  However,  by  the  rarest  and  most  for 
tunate  of  chances,  we  have  met  thus  early,  and 
for  this  I  can  never  be  too  devoutly  thankful." 

aNor  we,"  said  I  earnestly ;  "for  our  greatly 
desired  acquaintance  with  you  and  your  family 
could  not  have  begun  too  soon." 

"  Now,"  said  Mr.  Dusante,  "  I  will  perform  the 
duty  for  which  my  journey  was  undertaken,  and  I 
assure  you  it  is  a  great  pleasure  to  me  to  be  able, 
so  soon,  to  carry  out  this  cherished  purpose." 

He  then  took  up  from  the  floor  by  his  side  the 
package  which  he  had  so  safely  guarded  during 
his  swift  and  perilous  descent  of  the  mountain 
side,  and  which  he  had  since  kept  close  by  him. 
Placing  this  upon  his  knee,  he  removed  the  light 
shawl  in  which  it  had  been  rolled,  and  then  several 
pieces  of  wrapping-paper,  revealing  to  our  eyes 
the  familiar  fat  little  ginger-jar  which  had  stood 
on  the  mantel-piece  of  the  dining-room  in  the 


The  Diisantes.  89 

house  on  the  island,  and  in  which  we  had  deposited 
our  board-money. 

"  It  would  be  simply  impossible  for  me,"  said 
Mr.  Dusante,  "  to  consent  to  retain  in  my  posses 
sion  money  paid  for  the  aid  which  I  involunta 
rily  rendered  to  shipwrecked  people.  Had  I  been 
present  on  the  island  that  aid  would  have  been 
most  heartily  and  freely  given,  and  the  fact  of  my 
absence  makes  no  difference  whatever  in  regard 
to  my  feelings  on  the  subject  of  your  paying  for 
the  food  and  shelter  you  found  at  my  house. 
Having  understood  from  Mr.  Craig's  letter  that  it 
was  Mrs.  Leeks  who  superintended  the  collection 
and  depositing  of  the  money,  I  now  return  to  you, 
madam,  this  jar  with  its  contents." 

"And  which,"  said  Mrs.  Leeks,  sitting  up  very 
rigidly,  with  her  hands  clasped  behind  her,  "I 
don't  take.  If  it  had  been  a  day  and  a  night,  or 
even  two  nights  and  over  a  Sunday,  it  would  n't 
have  mattered ;  but  when  me  and  Mrs.  Aleshine  — 
and  the  rest  of  the  party  can  speak  for  them 
selves  —  stays  for  weeks  and  weeks,  without  leave 
or  license,  in  a  man's  house,  we  pay  our  board  — 
of  course,  deductin'  services.  Good-night." 

With  that  she  arose,  and  walked  very  erect  into 
the  adjoining  room. 

"  It  was  all  very  well,  Mr.  Dusante,"  said  Mrs. 


go  The  Dusantes. 

Aleshine,  "  for  you  to  try  to  carry  out  what  you 
thought  was  right,  but  we  have  our  ideas  as  to 
what  our  duty  is,  and  you  have  your  ideas  as  to 
what  your  duty  is,  an7  consciences  is  even." 

And  she  followed  her  friend. 

Mr.  Dusante  looked  surprised  and  troubled, 
and  he  turned  towards  me.  "  My  dear  sir,"  said 
I,  "  those  two  good  women  are  very  sensitive  in 
regard  to  right  and  justice,  and  I  think  it  will  be 
well  not  to  press  this  subject  upon  them.  As  for 
my  wife  and  I,  neither  of  us  would  consent  to 
touch  money  which  was  placed  in  that  jar  by  Mrs. 
Leeks  with  the  expectation  that  no  one  but  you  or 
one  of  your  family  would  take  it  out." 

"Very  well,  sir,'7  said  Mr.  Dusante,  replacing 
the  wrapping-paper  around  the  jar  j  "I  will  drop 
the  subject  for  the  present.  But  you  will  allow 
me  to  say,  sir,  that  I  also  am  very  sensitive  in 
regard  to  right  and  justice." 

Early  the  next  morning  the  man  who  had  been 
sent  to  the  railroad  station  came  back  bringing 
news  that  a  four-horse  wagon  would  shortly  be 
sent  for  us,  and  also  bearing  a  letter  from  Mr. 
Enderton  to  Ruth.  In  this  that  gentleman  in 
formed  his  daughter  that  he  was  quite  well,  but 
that  he  had  suffered  anxiety  on  account  of  her 
probable  hardships  in  the  abandoned  stage-coach. 


The  Dusantes.  91 

He  had  hoped,  however,  that  the  snow  which  had 
precluded  his  return  with  assistance  had  fallen 
lightly  in  the  elevated  position  in  which  she  had 
been  left ;  and  he  had  trusted  also  that  Mr.  Craig 
had  bethought  himself  to  build  a  fire  somewhere 
near  the  coach,  where  his  daughter  might  be 
warmed  j  and  that  the  provisions,  of  which  he 
knew  an  ample  quantity  had  been  packed  for  the 
trip,  had  been  properly  heated  for  her  and  given 
to  her  at  suitable  intervals.  This  anxiety,  he 
said,  had  added  very  much  to  his  own  mental  dis 
quietude  occasioned  by  the  violent  vituperations 
and  unjust  demands  of  the  driver  of  the  stage 
coach,  who  had  seen  fit  to  attack  him  with  all 
manner  of  abuse,  and  might  even  have  resorted 
to  personal  violence  had  it  not  been  for  the  in 
terference  of  by-standers  and  the  locking  of  his 
room-door.  He  was  now,  however,  much  relieved 
by  the  departure  of  this  driver,  and  by  the  news 
that  his  daughter  had  reached  a  place  of  safety, 
which,  of  course,  he  had  supposed  she  would  do, 
her  detention  having  occurred  on  an  ordinary 
route  of  travel. 

While  waiting  for  the  arrival  of  the  wagon,  the 
adventures  of  Mrs.  Leeks,  Mrs.  Aleshine,  and  my 
self,  as  well  as  those  of  Ruth  and  her  father,  from 
the  time  the  one  party  left  America  and  the  other 


92  The  Ditsantes. 

China,  were  related  at  length  to  the  Dusantes, 
who  showed  a  deep  interest  in  every  detail  and 
asked  many  questions. 

Mrs.  Dusante,  whose  nervous  equilibrium  had 
been  fully  restored  by  her  night's  rest,  and  who, 
although  feeling  a  little  stiff  and  bruised,  now 
declared  herself  quite  well,  proved  to  be  a  very 
pleasant  lady  of  fifty-five  or  thereabouts.  She 
was  of  a  quiet  disposition,  but  her  speech  and 
manner  showed  that  in  former  years,  at  least,  she 
had  been  a  woman  of  society,  and  I  soon  found 
out  that  she  was  much  interested  in  the  study  of 
character.  This  interest  was  principally  shown 
in  the  direction  of  Mrs.  Leeks  and  Mrs.  Aleshine, 
whom  she  evidently  looked  upon  as  most  remark 
able  women.  If  any  of  her  sentiments  were  those 
of  admiration,  however,  they  were  not  returned' 
in  kind :  Mrs.  Leeks  and  Mrs.  Aleshine  had  but  a 
small  opinion  of  her. 

11  There 's  mother-in-laws,  and  step-mothers,  and 
real  mothers,  and  grandmothers,  and  sometimes 
great-grandmothers  living  said  Mrs.  Leeks  to 
me  apart;  "but  though  Mr.  Dusante  may  be 
a  well-meanin'  man  —  and  I  don't  doubt  he 
is  —  and  wishin',  I  have  n't  the  least  reason 
to  disbelieve,  to  do  his  whole  duty  by  his  fel 
low-men,  still,  I  must  say,  bein'  brought  up  as 


The  Dus  antes.  93 

I  was,  he  has  n't  any  right  to  make  a  new 
kind  of  mother.  To  be  sure,  a  man  can  adopt 
children,  but  that  is  n't  goin'  backward  like  this 
is,  which  is  agen  nat'ral  law,  and  gospel." 

"I  expect/7  said  Mrs.  Aleshine,  who  was  with 
us,  "  that  them  French  has  got  fashions  that 
we  don't  know  about,  and  thankful  we  ought 
to  be  that  we  don't !  I  never  had  no  patience 
with  French  heels  an'  French  arsenic- green 
beans,  an'  now  if  there's  to  be  adoptin'  of 
mothers  in  this  country,  the  next  thing  will  be 
gullotynes." 

"  I  don't  see,"  said  I,  "  why  you  look  upon  the 
Dusantes  as  French  people.  They  are  just  as 
much  American  as  French." 

"  Well,"  said  Mrs.  Leeks,  "  it 's  not  for  me  and 
Mrs.  Aleshine  to  set  ourselves  up  to  judge  other 
people.  In  our  part  of  the  country  we  don't 
adopt  mothers,  but  if  they  do  it  in  France,  or  the 
Sandwich  Islands,  or  down  East,  I  don't  know  that 
we  ought  to  have  anythin'  to  say." 

"He  might  as  well  have  adopted  a  father  at  the 
same  time,"  said  Mrs.  Aleshine,  "  although,  to  be 
sure,  he  would  'a'  had  to  been  particular  to  take 
one  that  was  acquainted  with  Mrs.  Dusante,  and  not 
had  'em  strangers  to  each  other,  though  parents  to 
him." 


94  The  D  us  antes. 

"If  I  was  you,  Barb'ry  Aleshine,"  said  Mrs. 
Leeks,  "  1 7d  adopt  some  sort  of  rag  to  the  top  of 
my  head  to  serve  for  a  bonnet,  for  here  comes  the 
wagon,  and  I  suppose  now  we  711  be  off." 

We  took  leave  of  the  kind-hearted  ranch  people, 
who  looked  upon  us  as  a  godsend  into  their  lonely 
life,  and  disposed  ourselves  as  comfortably  as  we 
could  in  the  large  wagon.  Our  journey  of  seven 
or  eight  miles  to  the  railroad  station  was  slow,  and 
over  ways  that  were  rough.  Mrs.  Dusante  was  a 
delicate  woman  and  not  used  to  hardship,  whereas 
Mrs.  Leeks  and  Mrs.  Aleshine  were  exceedingly 
vigorous  and  tough.  The  consequence  of  this  dif 
ference  was  that  the  kindly  hearts  of  the  latter 
prompted  them  to  do  everything  they  could  to 
prevent  Mrs.  Dusante  feeling  the  bumps  and  jolts, 
and  to  give  her  such  advantages  of  wraps  and 
position  as  would  help  her  to  bear  better  the 
fatigues  of  the  journey. 

In  doing  this  these  good  women  gradually  for 
got  the  adopted  mother  and  came  to  think  only  of 
the  very  pleasant  lady  who  needed  their  attentions, 
and  who  took  such  a  lively  and  agreeable  interest 
in  their  family  histories,  their  homes,  their  manner 
of  living,  and  everything  that  pertained  to  them ; 
and  before  we  reached  the  end  of  our  trip,  these 
three  were  talking  together  like  old  friends.  Ruth 


The  Diisantes.  95 

and  Miss  Lucille  had  also  struck  up  a  warm 
acquaintance,  while  I  found  Mr.  Dusante  a  very 
entertaining  man, —  of  sedate  and  careful  speech, 
ingenious  ideas,  and  of  a  very  courteous  dis 
position. 

When  we  arrived  at  the  railroad  station  we  were 
met  by  Mr.  Enderton,  who  showed  a  moderate  de 
gree  of  pleasure  at  seeing  us  and  an  immoderate 
amount  of  annoyance,  exhibited  principally  to  me, 
in  being  obliged  to  give  up  to  the  women  of  our 
party  the  large  room  he  had  occupied  in  the  only 
lodging-house  in  the  little  settlement. 

When  I  informed  him  that  the  strangers  with 
us  were  the  Dusantes,  on  whose  island  we  had 
been  staying,  he  at  first  listened  vaguely.  He  had 
always  looked  upon  the  Dusante  family  as  a  sort 
of  fable  used  by  Mrs.  Leeks  to  countenance  her 
exactions  of  money  from  the  unfortunate  so- 
journers  on  the  island.  But  when  I  told  him 
what  Mr.  Dusante  had  done,  and  related  how  he 
had  brought  the  board-money  with  him,  and  had 
offered  to  pay  it  back  to  us,  an  eager  interest  was 
aroused  in  him. 

"I  do  not  wonder,"  he  exclaimed,  "that  the 
conscience-stricken  man  wishes  to  give  the  money 
back,  but  that  any  one  should  refuse  what  actually 
belongs  to  him  or  her  is  beyond  my  comprehen- 


96  The  D ws antes. 

sion!  One  thing  is  certain — I  shall  receive  my 
portion.  Fifteen  dollars  a  week  for  my  daughter 
and  myself  that  woman  charged  me,  and  I  will 
have  it  back." 

"  My  dear  sir/7 1  said,  "  your  board  was  reduced 
to  the  same  sum  as  that  paid  by  the  rest  of  us,— 
four  dollars  a  week  each." 

"  I  call  to  mind  no  reduction,"  said  Mr.  Ender- 
ton.  "I  remember  distinctly  the  exorbitant  sum 
charged  me  for  board  on  a  desert  island.  It  made 
a  deep  impression  upon  me." 

"  I  do  not  care  to  talk  any  further  on  this  sub 
ject,"  I  said.  "  You  must  settle  it  with  Mrs. 
Leeks." 

Mr.  Enderton  gave  a  great  sniff,  and  walked 
away  with  dignity.  I  could  not  but  laugh  as  I 
imagined  his  condition  two  minutes  after  he  had 
stated  his  opinions  on  this  subject  to  Mrs.  Leeks. 

When  Mr.  Dusante  had  started  from  San  Fran 
cisco  on  his  search  for  us,  he  had  sent  his  heavy 
baggage  ahead  of  him  to  Ogden  City,  where  he 
purposed  to  make  his  first  stop.  He  supposed 
that  we  might  possibly  here  diverge  from  our 
homeward-bound  route  in  order  to  visit  the  Mor 
mon  metropolis ;  and,  if  we  had  done  so,  he  did 
not  wish  to  pass  us.  It  was  therefore  now  agreed 
that  we  should  all  go  to  Ogden  City,  and  there 


The  Dusantcs.  gj 

await  the  arrival  of  our  effects  left  iii  the  snowed- 
up  vehicles  on  the  mountain-side.  We  made  ar 
rangements  with  the  station-master  that  these 
should  be  forwarded  to  us  as  soon  as  the  stage 
coach  and  the  carriage  could  be  brought  down. 
All  the  baggage  of  my  party  was  on  the  coach, 
and  it  consisted  only  of  a  few  valises  bought  in 
San  Francisco,  and  a  package  containing  two  life- 
preservers,  which  Mrs.  Leeks  and  Mrs.  Aleshine 
said  they  would  take  home  with  them,  if  they  took 
nothing  else. 

On  the  morning  after  our  arrival  at  Ogden 
City,  Mr.  Dusante  took  me  aside.  "  Sir,"  he  said, 
"  I  wish  to  confide  to  you  my  intentions  regard 
ing  the  jar  containing  the  money  left  by  your 
party  in  my  house,  and  I  trust  you  will  do  noth 
ing  to  thwart  them.  When  your  baggage  ar 
rives,  you,  with  your  party,  will  doubtless  con 
tinue  your  eastern  way,  and  we  shall  return  to 
Sau  Francisco.  But  the  jar,  with  its  contents, 
shall  be  left  behind  to  be  delivered  to  Mrs.  Leeks. 
If  you  will  take  charge  of  the  jar  and  hand  it  to 
her,  sir,  I  shall  be  obliged  greatly.'7 

I  promised  Mr.  Dusante  that  I  would  not  inter 
fere  with  his  intentions,  but  asserted  that  I  could, 
on  no  account,  take  charge  of  the  jar.  The  pos 
session  of  that  piece  of  pottery,  with  its  contents, 
9 


9<2  The  Diisantes. 

was  now  a  matter  of  dispute  between  Mm  and 
Mrs.  Leeks,  and  must  be  settled  by  them. 

"Very  well,  then,  sir/'  he  said.  "I  shall  ar 
range  to  depart  before  you  and  your  company, 
and  I  shall  leave  the  jar,  suitably  packed,  in  the 
care  of  the  clerk  of  this  hotel,  with  directions  to 
hand  it  to  Mrs.  Leeks  after  I  am  gone.  Thus 
there  will  be  nothing  for  her  to  do  but  to  re 
ceive  it." 

Some  one  now  came  into  the  smoking-room, 
where  we  were  sitting,  and  no  more  was  said, 
on  this  subject.  Mr.  Dusante's  statement  of  his 
intention  very  much  amused  me,  for  Mrs.  Leeks 
had  previously  taken  me  into  her  confidence  in 
regard  to  her  intentions  in  this  matter.  "  Mr.  Du- 
sante,"  she  had  said,  "has  n't  dropped  a  word 
more  about  the  money  in  that  ginger-jar,  but  I 
know  just  as  well  as  he  does  what  he  is  goin'  to 
do  about  it.  When  the  time  comes  to  go,  he  's 
goin7  to  slip  off  quietly,  leavin'  that  jar  behind 
him,  thinkin'  then  I  '11  be  obliged  to  take  it,  there 
bein'  nobody  to  give  it  back  to.  But  he  '11  find 
me  just  as  sharp  as  he  is.  I  Ve  got  the  street  and 
number  of  his  business  place  in  Honolulu  from 
his  sister, —  askin'  about  it  in  an  off-hand  way,  as 
if  it  did  n't  mean  anything, —  an'  if  that  jar  is  left 
for  me,  I  '11  pack  it  in  a  box,  money  and  all,  and 


The  Dittanies.  99 

I  ?11  express  it  to  Mr.  Dusante ;  and  when  he 
gets  to  Honolulu  he  '11  find  it  there,  and  then 
he  '11  know  that  two  can  play  at  that  sort  of 
game." 

Knowing  Mr.  Dusante,  and  knowing  Mrs.  Leeks, 
I  pictured  to  myself  a  box  containing  a  ginger- 
jar,  and  covered  with  numerous  half-obliterated 
addresses,  traveling  backward  and  forward  be 
tween  the  Sandwich  Islands  and  Pennsylvania 
during  the  lifetime  of  the  contestants,  and,  prob 
ably,  if  testamentary  desire  should  be  regarded, 
during  a  great  part  of  the  lifetime  of  their  heirs. 
That  the  wear  and  tear  of  the  box  might  make 
it  necessary  to  inclose  it  in  a  keg,  and  that,  event 
ually,  the  keg  might  have  to  be  placed  in  a  barrel, 
and  that,  after  a  time,  in  a  hogshead,  seemed  to 
me  as  likely  as  any  other  contingencies  which 
might  befall  this  peregrinating  ginger-jar. 

We  spent  three  days  in  Ogden  City,  and  then, 
the  weather  having  moderated  very  much,  and 
the  snow  on  the  mountains  having  melted  suf 
ficiently  to  allow  the  vehicles  to  be  brought  down, 
our  effects  were  forwarded  to  us,  and  my  party 
and  that  of  Mr.  Dusante  prepared  to  proceed  on 
our  different  ways.  An  eastward-bound  train 
left  that  evening  an  hour  after  we  received  our 
baggage,  but  we  did  not  care  to  depart  upon  such 


/oo  The  Dusantes. 

short  notice,  and  so  determined  to  remain  nntil 
the  next  day. 

In  the  evening  Mr.  Dusante  came  to  me  to  say 
that  he  was  very  glad  to  find  that  the  westward 
train  would  leave  Ogden  City  early  in  the  morn 
ing,  so  that  he  and  his  family  wonld  start  on  their 
journey  some  hours  before  we  should  leave.  "  This 
suits  my  plans  exactly/7  he  said.  "  I  have  left  the 
ginger- jar,  securely  wrapped,  and  addressed  to  Mrs. 
Leeks,  with  the  clerk  of  the  hotel,  who  will  de 
liver  it  to-morrow  immediately  after  my  departure. 
All  our  preparations  are  made,  and  we  purpose 
this  evening  to  bid  farewell  to  you  and  our  other 
kind  friends,  from  whom,  I  assure  you,  we  are 
most  deeply  grieved  to  part." 

I  had  just  replied  that  we  also  regretted  ex 
tremely  the  necessity  for  this  separation,  when  a 
boy  brought  me  a  letter.  I  opened  it,  and  found 
it  was  from  Mr.  Enderton.  It  read  as  follows : 

DEAR  SIR  :  I  have  determined  not  to  wait  here  until 
to-morrow,  but  to  proceed  eastward  by  this  evening's 
train.  I  desire  to  spend  a  day  in  Chicago,  and  as  you 
and  the  others  will  probably  not  wish  to  stop  there,  I 
shall,  by  this  means,  attain  my  object  without  detaining 
you.  My  sudden  resolution  will  not  give  me  time  to  see 
you  all  before  I  start,  but  I  have  taken  a  hurried  leave 
of  my  daughter,  and  this  letter  will  explain  my  de 
parture  to  the  rest. 


The  Dusantes.  101 

I  will  also  mention  that  I  have  thought  it  proper,  as 
the  natural  head  of  our  party,  both  by  age  and  position, 
to  settle  the  amicable  dispute  in  regard  to  the  reception 
and  disposition  of  the  money  paid,  under  an  excusa 
ble  misapprehension,  for  our  board  and  lodging  upon  a 
desert  island.  I  discovered  that  the  receptacle  of  this 
money  had  been  left  in  the  custody  of  the  clerk,  ad 
dressed  to  Mrs.  Leeks,  who  has  not  only  already  refused 
to  receive  it,  and  would  probably  do  so  again,  but  who 
is,  in  my  opinion,  in  no  wise  entitled  to  hold,  possess, 
or  dispose  of  it.  I,  therefore,  without  making  any  dis 
turbance  whatever,  have  taken  charge  of  the  package, 
and  shall  convey  it  with  me  to  Chicago.  When  you 
arrive  there,  I  will  apportion  the  contents  among  us  ac 
cording  to  our  several  claims.  This  I  regard  as  a  very 
sensible  and  prudent  solution  of  the  little  difficulty 
which  has  confronted  us  in  regard  to  the  disposition  of 
this  money.  Yours  hurriedly, 

DAVID  J.  ENDERTON. 

P.  S.  I  shall  stop  at  Brandiger's  Hotel,  where  I  shall 
await  you. 


PART  III 

MR.  ENDERTON'S  letter  astonished  and  an 
gered  me,  but,  in  spite  of  my  indignation,  I 
could  not  help  smiling  at  the  unexpected  way  in 
which  he  had  put  a  stop  to  the  probable  perpet 
ual  peregrinations  of  the  ginger-jar.  I  handed  the 
letter  to  Mr.  Dusante,  and  when  he  had  read  it 
his  face  flushed,  and  I  could  see  that  he  was  very 
angry,  although  he  kept  his  temper  under  excel 
lent  control. 

"Sir,"  he  said  presently,  "this  shall  not  be 
allowed.  That  jar,  with  its  contents,  is  my  prop 
erty  until  Mrs.  Leeks  has  consented  to  receive  it. 
It  is  of  my  own  option  that  I  return  it  at  all,  and 
I  have  decided  to  return  it  to  Mrs.  Leeks.  Any 
one  interfering  with  my  intentions  steps  entirely 
beyond  the  line  of  just  and  warrantable  proce 
dure.  Sir,  I  shall  not  go  westward  to-morrow 
morning,  but,  with  my  family,  will  accompany 
you  to  Chicago,  where  I  shall  require  Mr.  Ender- 

102 


The  Dusantes.  103 

ton  to  return  to  me  my  property,  which  I  shall 
then  dispose  of  as  I  see  fit.  You  must  excuse  me, 
sir,  if  anything  I  have  said  regarding  this  gentle 
man  with  whom  you  are  connected  has  wounded 
your  sensibilities." 

"  Oh,  don't  think  of  that ! »  I  exclaimed.  "  Pitch 
into  Enderton  as  much  as  you  please,  and  you  may 
be  sure  that  I  shall  not  object.  When  I  took  the 
daughter  to  wife,  I  did  not  marry  the  father.  But, 
of  course,  for  my  wife's  sake  I  hope  this  matter 
will  not  be  made  the  subject  of  public  comment." 

"  You  need  have  no  fear  of  that,"  said  Mr.  Du- 
sante;  "  and  you  will  allow  me  to  remark  that  Mr. 
Enderton's  wife  must  have  been  a  most  charming 
lady." 

"  Why  do  you  think  so  ? "  I  asked. 

"I  judge  so/7  he  answered,  with  a  bow,  "from 
my  acquaintance  with  Mrs.  Craig." 

I  now  went  immediately  to  Ruth,  who,  I  found, 
knew  nothing  of  what  had  occurred,  except  that 
her  father  had  gone  on  to  Chicago  in  advance  of 
our  party,  and  had  had  time  only  to  bid  her  a 
hasty  good-bye.  I  made  no  remarks  on  this  haste 
which  would  not  allow  Mr.  Enderton  to  take  leave 
of  us,  but  which  gave  him  time  to  write  a  letter 
of  some  length;  and  as  Ruth  knew  nothing  of 
this  letter,  I  determined  not  to  mention  it  to  her. 


W4  The  D  us  antes. 

Her  father's  sudden  departure  surprised  her  but 
little,  for  she  told  me  that  he  always  liked  to  get 
to  places  before  the  rest  of  the  party  with  whom 
he  might  be  journeying.  "  Even  when  we  go  to 
church/'  she  said,  "  he  always  walks  ahead  of  the 
rest  of  us.  I  don't  understand  why  he  likes  to  do 
so,  but  this  is  one  of  his  habits." 

When  I  informed  Mrs.  Leeks  and  Mrs.  Aleshine 
of  what  had  happened,  they  fairly  blazed. 

"  I  don't  know  what  Mr.  Dusante  calls  it,"  ex 
claimed  Mrs.  Leeks,  "  but  I  know  what  I  call  it ! n 

"Yes,  indeed!"  cried  Mrs.  Aleshine,  her  round 
eyes  sparkling  with  excitement  j  "  if  that  is  n't  ex- 
honesty,  then  he  ain't  no  ex-missionary !  I  pity 
the  heathen  he  converted  !  " 

"  1 11  convert  him,"  said  Mrs.  Leeks,  "  if  ever  I 
lay  eyes  on  him !  Walkin'  away  with  a  package 
with  my  name  on  it !  He  might  as  well  take  my 
gold  spectacles  or  my  tortoise-shell  comb !  I  sup 
pose  there's  no  such  thing  as  ketchin'  up  with 
him,  but  I  '11  telegraph  after  him ;  an'  I  '11  let  him 
know  that  if  he  dares  to  open  a  package  of  mine, 
I  '11  put  the  law  on  him  !  " 

"That 's  so,"  said  Mrs.  Aleshine.  "  You  kin  send 
telegraphs  all  along  the  line  to  one  station  an' 
another  for  conductors  to  give  to  him  in  the  cars, 
an'  directed  to  Mr.  Enderton,  a  tall  man  with 


The  Dusantes.  105 

gray-mixed  hair  an7  a  stolen  bundle.  That 's  the  way 
they  did  in  our  place  when  Abram  Marly's  wife  fell 
into  the  cistern,  an'  he  'd  jus'  took  the  cars  to  the 
city,  an'  they  telegraphed  to  him  at  five  different 
stations  to  know  where  he  'd  left  the  ladder." 

"Which  ain't  a  bad  idea/'  said  Mrs.  Leeks, 
"  though  his  name  will  be  enough  on  it  without 
no  description ;  an'  1 11  do  that  this  minute,  an' 
find  out  about  the  stations  from  the  clerk." 

"  You  must  be  very  careful,"  I  said,  "  about  any 
thing  of  that  kind,  for  the  telegrams  will  be  read 
at  the  stations,  and  Mr.  Enderton  might  be  brought 
into  trouble  in  a  way  which  we  all  should  regret ; 
but  a  dispatch  may  be  worded  so  that  he,  and  no 
one  else,  would  understand  it." 

"  Very  well,"  said  Mrs.  Leeks,  "  an'  let 's  get  at 
it ;  but  I  must  say  that  he  don't  deserve  bein' 
saved  no  trouble,  for  I  'm  as  sure  as  that  I  'm  a 
livin'  woman  that  he  never  saved  nobody  else  no 
trouble  sence  the  first  minute  he  was  born." 

The  following  dispatch  was  concocted  and  sent 
on  to  Bridger,  to  be  delivered  to  Mr.  Enderton  on 
the  train : 

The  package  you  know  of  has  been  stolen.  You  will 
recognize  the  thief.  If  he  leaves  it  at  Chicago  hotel, 
let  him  go.  If  he  opens  it,  clap  him  in  jail. 

MRS.  LECKS. 


106  The  Dusantes. 

"  I  think  that  will  make  him  keep  his  fingers  off 
it,"  said  Mrs.  Leeks  j  "an'  if  Mr.  Dusante  chooses 
to*  send  somethin'  of  the  same  kind  to  some  other 
station,  it  won't  do  no  harm.  An'  if  that  Ender- 
ton  gets  so  skeered  that  he  keeps  out  of  sight  and 
hearin'  of  all  of  us,  it  '11  be  the  best  thing  that 's 
happened  yet.  An'  I  want  you  to  understan',  Mr. 
Craig,  that  nothin'  's  goin'  to  be  said  or  done  to 
make  your  wife  feel  bad ;  an'  there  's  no  need  of 
her  hearin'  about  what 's  been  done  or  what 's  goin' 
to  be  done.  But  I  '11  say  for  her,  that  though,  of 
course,  Mr.  Enderton  is  her  father  and  she  looks 
up  to  him  as  such,  she 's  a  mighty  deal  livelier  and 
gayer-hearted  when  he  's  away  than  when  he  's 
with  her.  An'  as  for  the  rest  of  us,  there 's  no  use 
sayin'  anythin'  about  our  resignedness  to  the  loss 
of  his  company." 

"  I  should  say  so,"  said  Mrs.  Aleshine ;  "  for  if 
there  ever  was  a  man  who  thought  of  himself 
ninety-nine  times  before  he  thought  of  anybody 
else  once,  an'  then  as  like  as  not  to  for  git  that 
once,  he  's  the  man.  An'  it 's  not,  by  no  means, 
that  I  'm  down  on  missionaries,  for  it 's  many  a 
box  I  've  made  up  for  'em,  an'  never  begrudged 
neither  money  nor  trouble,  an'  will  do  it  ag'in 
many  times,  I  hope.  But  he  ought  n't  to  be  called 
one,  havin'  given  it  up, —  unless  they  gave  him  up, 


The  Diisantes.  ioj 

which  there  7s  no  knowin*  which  it  was, —  for  if 
there  's  anything  which  shows  the  good  in  a  man, 
it 's  his  bein'  willin7  to  give  up  the  comforts  of  a 
Christian  land  an'  go  an'  convert  heathens  ;  though 
bein'  willin'  to  give  up  the  heathens  an'  go  for  the 
comforts  shows  him  quite  different,  besides,  as  like 
as  not,  chargin'  double,  an'  only  half  converting 

Mr.  Dusante  was  fully  determined  to  go  on 
with  us  until  he  had  recovered  possession  of  the 
ginger-jar.  His  courteous  feelings  towards  Mrs. 
Craig  and  myself  prevented  his  saying  muck 
about  Mr.  Enderton,  but  I  had  good  reason  to  be 
lieve  that  his  opinions  in  regard  to  my  father-in- 
law  were  not  very  different  from  those  of  Mrs. 
Leeks  and  Mrs.  Aleshine.  Ever  since  Mr.  Ender 
ton  had  shown  his  petulant  selfishness,  when 
obliged  to  give  up  his  room  at  the  railroad  station 
for  the  use  of  the  women  of  his  party,  Mr.  Du 
sante  had  looked  upon  him  coldly,  and  the  two 
had  had  but  little  to  say  to  each  other. 

We  were  all  very  glad  that  our  pleasant  party 
was  not  to  be  broken  up  •  and  although  there  was 
no  resignation  at  the  absence  of  the  ginger-jar,  we 
started  on  our  journey  the  next  day  in  a  pleasant- 
er  mood  for  the  absence  of  Mr.  Enderton.  Be 
fore  we  left,  Mr.  Dusante  sent  a  telegram  to 
Kearney  Junction,  to  be  delivered  to  Mr.  En- 


io8  The  Ditsantzs. 

derton  when  lie  arrived  there.  What  this  message 
was  I  do  not  know,  but  I  imagine  its  tone  was 
decided. 

Our  journey  to  Chicago  was  a  pleasant  one. 
We  had  now  all  become  very  well  acquainted  with 
each  other,  and  there  was  no  discordant  element 
in  the  combined  party.  Some  of  us  were  a  little 
apprehensive  of  trouble,  or  annoyance  at  least, 
awaiting  us  in  Chicago,  but  we  did  not  speak  of 
it  j  and  while  Ruth  knew  nothing  of  her  father's 
misbehavior,  it  might  have  been  supposed  that 
the  rest  had  forgotten  it. 

At  Chicago  we  went  at  once  to  Brandiger's 
Hotel,  and  there  we  found,  instead  of  Mr.  Ender- 
ton,  a  letter  from  him  to  Ruth.  It  read  as  fol 
lows  : 

MY  DEAR  DAUGHTER  :  I  have  determined  not  to  wait 
here,  as  originally  intended,  but  to  go  on  by  myself.  I 
am  sorry  not  to  meet  you  here,  but  it  will  not  be  long 
before  we  are  together  again,  and  you  know  I  do  not 
like  to  travel  with  a  party.  Its  various  members  al 
ways  incommode  me  in  one  way  or  another.  I  had 
proposed  to  go  to  Philadelphia  and  wait  for  you  there, 
but  have  since  concluded  to  stop  at  Meadowville,  a 
village  in  the  interior  of  Pennsylvania,  where,  as  they 
have  informed  me,  the  two  women,  Mrs.  Leeks  and 
Mrs.  Aleshine,  reside.  I  wish  to  see  the  party  all  to 
gether  before  I  take  final  leave  of  them,  and  I  suppose 
the  two  women  will  not  consent  to  go  any  farther  than 
the  country  town  in  which  they  live.  Inclosed  is  a  note 


The  Dmantes.  109 

to  your  husband  relating  to  business  matters.  I  hope 
that  he  will  take  the  best  of  care  of  you  during  the 
rest  of  the  journey,  and  thus  very  much  oblige 

YOUR  AFFECTIONATE  FATHER. 

This  was  my  note  : 

MR.  CRAIG.  SIR  :  I  should  have  supposed  that  you 
would  have  been  able  to  prevent  the  insolent  messages 
which  have  been  telegraphed  to  me  from  some  mem 
bers  of  your  party,  but  it  is  my  lot  to  be  disappointed 
in  those  in  whom  I  trust.  I  shall  make  no  answer  to 
these  messages,  but  will  say  to  you  that  I  am  not  to  be 
browbeaten  in  my  intention  to  divide  among  its  right 
ful  claimants  the  money  now  in  my  possession.  It  is 
not  that  I  care  for  the  comparatively  paltry  sum  that 
will  fall  to  myself  and  my  daughter,  but  it  is  the  prin 
ciple  of  the  matter  for  which  I  am  contending.  It  was 
due  to  me  that  the  amount  should  have  been  returned 
to  me,  and  to  no  other,  for  me  to  make  the  proper 
division.  I  therefore  rest  upon  my  principles  and  my 
rights;  and,  desiring  to  avoid  needless  altercations, 
shall  proceed  to  Meadowville,  where,  when  the  rest  of 
my  party  arrive,  I  shall  justly  apportion  the  money.  I 
suppose  the  man  Dusante  will  not  be  foolish  enough  to 
protract  his  useless  journey  farther  than  Chicago.  It 
is  your  duty  to  make  him  see  the  impropriety  of  so 
doing. 

Yours,  etc., 

D.  J.  ENDERTON. 

Ruth's  letter  was  shown  to  all  the  party,  and 
mine  in  private  to  Mr.  Dusante,  Mrs.  Leeks,  and 
Mrs.  Aleshine.    When  the  first  moments  of  aston 
ishment  were  over,  Mrs.  Leeks  exclaimed : 
10 


no  The  Dusantes. 

"  Well,  after  all,  I  don't  know  that  I  'm  so  very 
sorry  that  the  old  sneak  has  done  this,  for  now 
we  're  rid  of  him  for  the  rest  of  the  trip ;  an'  I  'm 
pretty  certain,  from  the  way  he  writes,  that  he 
has  n't  dipped  into  that  jar  yet.  We  've  skeered 
him  from  doin'  that." 

"  But  the  impidence  of  him  ! "  said  Mrs.  Aleshine. 
"Think  of  his  goin'  to  the  very  town  where  we 
live  an'  gittin'  there  fust !  He  '11  be  settin'  on  that 
tavern  porch  with  every  loafer  in  the  place  about 
him,  an'  tellin'  'em  the  whole  story  of  what  hap 
pened  to  us  from  beginning  to  end,  till  by  the 
time  we  git  there  it  '11  be  all  over  the  place  an'  as 
stale  as  last  week's  bread." 

"'The  man  Dusante,'"  quietly  remarked  that 
individual,  "  will  not  abandon  the  purpose  of  hi* 
journey.  He  left  his  island  to  place  in  the  hands 
of  Mrs.  Leeks,  on  behalf  of  her  party,  the  ginger- 
jar  with  the  money  inclosed.  He  will  therefore 
go  on  with  you  to  Meadowville,  and  will  there 
make  formal  demand,  and,  if  necessary,  legal  req 
uisition,  for  the  possession  of  that  jar  and  that 
money ;  after  which  he  will  proceed  to  carry  out 
his  original  intentions." 

We  all  expressed  our  pleasure  at  having  him, 
with  his  ladies,  as  companions  for  the  remain 
der  of  our  journey,  and  Mrs.  Leeks  immediately 


The  Diisantes.  in 

offered  them  the  hospitalities  of  her  house  for  as 
long  a  time  as  they  might  wish  to  stay  with  her. 

"  The  weather  there/7  she  said,  "  is  often  splen 
did  till  past  Thanksgivin'  Day,  an'  nobody  could 
be  weleomer  than  you." 

"  I  'd  have  asked  you  myself,"  said  Mrs.  Ale- 
shine,  "if  Mrs.  Leeks  had  n't  done  it, —  which  of 
course  she  would,  bein'  alive, —  but  I  ?m  goin7  to 
have  Mr.  Craig  an7  his  wife,  an7  as  our  houses  is 
near,  we  '11  see  each  other  all  the  time.  An7  if 
Mr.  Enderton  chooses  to  stay  awhile  at  the  tav 
ern,  he  can  come  over  to  see  his  daughter  when 
ever  he  likes.  I  '11  go  as  fur  as  that,  though  no 
further  can  I  go.  1 7m  not  the  one  to  turn  any 
body  from  my  door,  be  he  heathen,  or  jus1  as  bad, 
or  wuss.  But  tea  once,  or  perhaps  twice,  is  all 
that  I  can  find  it  in  my  heart  to  offer  that  man 
after  what  he  's  done." 

As  the  Dusantes  and  Ruth  expressed  a  desire  to 
see  something  of  Chicago,  where  they  had  never 
been  before,  we  remained  in  this  city  for  two 
days,  feeling  that  as  Mr.  Enderton  would  await 
our  coming,  there  was  no  necessity  for  haste. 

Early  in  the  afternoon  of  the  second  day  I  went 
into  the  parlor  of  the  hotel,  where  I  expected  to 
find  our  party  prepared  for  a  sight-seeing  excur 
sion  ;  but  I  found  the  room  tenanted  only  by  Mrs. 


ii2  The  Duxantzs. 

Aleshine,  who  was  sitting  with  her  bonnet  and 
wraps  on,  ready  to  start  forth.  I  had  said  but  a  few 
words  to  her  when  Mrs.  Leeks  entered,  bonnetless 
and  shawlless,  and  with  her  knitting  in  her  hand. 
She  took  a  seat  in  a  large  easy-chair,  put  on  her 
spectacles,  and  proceeded  to  knit. 

"  Mrs.  Leeks  ! "  exclaimed  her  friend  in  surprise, 
"  don't  you  intend  goin?  out  this  afternoon  ? " 

"  No,"  said  Mrs.  Leeks.  "  I  've  seen  all  I  want 
to  see,  an'  I  >m  goin'  to  stay  in  the  house  an'  keep 
quiet." 

"  Is  n't  Mr.  Dusante  goin'  out  this  afternoon  ?  " 
asked  Mrs.  Aleshine. 

Mrs.  Leeks  laid  her  knitting  in  her  lap  j  then 
she  took  off  her  spectacles,  folded  them,  and 
placed  them  beside  the  ball  of  yarn  j  and,  turning 
her  chair  around,  she  faced  her  friend.  "  Barbery 
Aleshine,"  said  she,  speaking  very  deliberately, 
"  has  any  such  a  thing  got  into  your  mind  as  that 
I  'm  settin'  my  cap  at  Mr.  Dusante  ? " 

"I  don't  say  you  have,  an'  I  don't  say  you 
have  n't,"  answered  Mrs.  Aleshine,  her  fat  hands 
folded  on  her  knees,  and  her  round  face  shining 
from  under  her  new  bonnet  with  an  expression 
of  hearty  good- will,  "  but  this  I  will  say, —  an'  I 
don't  care  who  hears  it, —  that  if  you  was  to  set 
your  cap  at  Mr.  Dusante  there  need  n't  nobody 


The  Dusantes. 

say  anything  agin  it,  so  long  as  you  are  content. 
He  is  n't  what  I  'd  choose  for  you,  if  I  had  the 
choosin',  for  I  ?d  git  one  with  an  American  name 
an'  no  islands.  But  that  's  neither  here  nor  there, 
for  you  ?re  a  grown  woman  an'  can  do  your  own 
choosin'.  An7  whether  there  's  any  choosin'  to  be 
done  is  your  own  business  too,  for  it  's  full  eleven 
years  sence  you  've  been  done  with  widder  fixin's ; 
an'  if  Mr.  Leeks  was  to  rise  up  out  of  his  grave 
this  minute,  he  could  n't  put  his  hand  on  his  heart 
an'  say  that  you  had  n't  done  your  full  duty  by 
him,  both  before  an'  after  he  was  laid  away.  An' 
so,  if  you  did  want  to  do  choosin',  an'  made  up 
your  mind  to  set  your  cap  at  Mr.  Dusante,  there  's 
no  word  to  be  said.  Both  of  you  is  ripe-aged  an' 
qualified  to  know  your  own  minds,  an'  both  of 
you  is  well  off  enough,  to  all  intents  an'  purposes, 
to  settle  down  together,  if  so  inclined.  An'  as  to 
his  sister,  I  don't  expect  she  will  be  on  his  hands 
for  long.  An'  if  you  can  put  up  with  an  adopted 
mother-in-law,  that 's  your  business,  not  mine ; 
though  I  allus  did  say,  Mrs.  Leeks,  that  if  you  'd 
been  'Piscopalian,  you  'd  been  Low  Church." 

"  Is  that  all  t "  said  Mrs.  Leeks. 

"  Yes,"  replied  the  other ;  "  it 's  all  I  have  to  say 
jus'  now,  though  more  might  come  to  me  if  I  gave 
my  mind  to  it." 


H4  The  Dttsantcs. 

"Well,  then/7  said  Mrs.  Leeks,  "I  've  somethin7 
to  say  on  this  p'int,  and  I  7m  very  glad  Mr.  Craig 
is  here  to  hear  it.  If  I  had  a  feelin7  in  the  direc 
tion  of  Mr.  Dusante  that  he  was  a  man,  though 
not  exactly  what  I  might  wish,  havin7  somethin7 
of  foreign  manners  with  ties  in  the  Sandwich  Isl 
ands,  which  I  should  n't  have  had  so  if  I  7d  had 
the  orderin7  of  it,  who  was  still  a  Christian  gentle 
man, —  as  showed  by  his  acts,  not  his  words, —  a 
lovin7  brother ;  an'  a  kind  an7  attentive  son  by  his 
own  adoption;  and  who  would  make  me  a  good 
husband  for  the  rest  of  our  two  lives ;  then  I  ?d  go 
and  1 7d  set  my  cap  at  him — not  bold  nor  flauutin', 
nor  unbecomin7  to  a  woman  of  my  age,  but  just  so 
much  settin7  of  it  at  him,  that  if  he  had  any  feel- 
in7s  in  my  direction,  and  thought,  although  it  was 
rather  late  in  life  for  him  to  make  a  change,  that 
if  he  was  goin7  to  do  it  he  7d  rather  make  that 
change  with  a  woman  who  had  age  enough,  and 
experience  enough  in  downs  as  well  as  ups,  and  in 
married  life  as  well  as  single,  to  make  him  feel  that 
as  he  got  her  so  he  7d  always  find  her ;  then  I  say 
all  he  7d  have  to  do  would  be  to  come  to  me  an'  say 
what  he  thought,  an7 1  'd  say  what  I  thought,  an7 
the  thing  would  be  settled,  an7  nobody  in  this  world 
need  have  one  word  to  say,  except  to  wish  us  joy, 
an7  then  go  along  and  attend  to  their  own  business. 


The  Dusantcz.  7/5 

"  But  now  I  say  to  you,  Barb'ry  Aleshine,  an' 
just  the  same  to  you,  Mr.  Craig,  that  I  have  n't 
got  no  such  feelings  in  the  direction  of  Mr.  Du- 
sante,  an'  I  don't  intend  to  set  my  cap  at  him, 
an'  if  he  wore  such  a  thing  and  set  it  at  me,  I  'd 
say  to  him,  kind  though  firm,  that  he  could  put  it 
straight  again  as  far  as  I  was  concerned  j  an7  that  if 
he  chose  to  set  it  at  any  other  woman,  if  the  nearest 
an'  dearest  friend  I  have  on  earth,  I  'd  do  what  I 
could  to  make  their  married  lives  as  happy  as  they 
could  be  under  the  circumstances ;  and  no  matter 
what  happened,  I  would  n't  say  one  word,  though 
I  might  think  what  I  pleased.  An'  now  you  have 
it,  all  straight  and  plain :  if  I  wanted  to  set 
caps,  I  'd  set  'em ;  and  if  I  did  n't  want  to  set  'em, 
I  would  n't.  I  don't  want  to,  and  I  don't.7' 

And,  putting  on  her  spectacles,  she  resumed  her 
knitting. 

Mrs.  Aleshine  turned  upon  her  friend  a  beam 
ing  face. 

"  Mrs.  Leeks,"  she  said,  "  your  words  has  lifted 
a  load  from  off  my  mind.  It  would  n't  ha'  broke 
me  down,  an'  you  would  n't  never  have  knowed 
I  carried  it  j  but  it 's  gone,  an'  I  'm  mighty  glad 
of  it.  An'  as  for  me  an'  my  cap, —  an'  when 
you  spoke  of  nearest  and  dearest  friends,  you 
could  n't  meant  nobody  but  me, —  you  need  n't  be 


n6  The  Dmantes. 

afraid.  No  matter  what  I  was,  nor  what  he  was, 
nor  what  I  thought  of  him,  nor  what  he  thought 
of  me,  I  could  n't  never  say  to  my  son  when 
he  comes  to  his  mother's  arms,  all  the  way  from 
Japan  :  l  George,  here  ?s  a  Frenchman  who  I  give 
to  you  for  a  father ! 7 " 

Here  I  burst  out  laughing,  but  Mrs.  Leeks 
gravely  remarked :  "  Now  I  hope  this  business  of 
cap-settin7  is  settled  an'  done  with.77 

"  Which  it  is,"  said  Mrs.  Aleshine,  as  she  rose  to 
meet  the  rest  of  our  party  as  they  entered  the 
room. 

For  several  days  I  could  not  look  upon  the  dig 
nified  and  almost  courtly  Mr.  Dusante  without 
laughing  internally  and  wondering  what  he  would 
think  if  he  knew  how,  without  the  slightest  provo 
cation  on  his  side,  a  matrimonial  connection  with 
him  had  been  discussed  by  these  good  women,  and 
how  the  matter  had  been  finally  settled.  I  think 
he  would  have  considered  this  the  most  surprising 
incident  in  the  whole  series  of  his  adventures. 

On  our  journey  from  Chicago  to  the  little  coun 
try  town  in  the  interior  of  Pennsylvania  we  made 
a  few  stops  at  points  of  interest  for  the  sake  of 
Ruth  and  the  Dusante  ladies,  Mrs.  Leeks  and 
Mrs.  Aleshine  generously  consenting  to  these  de 
lays,  although  I  knew  they  felt  impatient  to  reach 


The  Dmantes.  nj 

their  homes.  They  were  now  on  most  social  terms 
with  Mrs.  Dusante,  and  the  three  chatted  together 
like  old  friends. 

"I  asked  her  if  we  might  call  her  Emily,"  said 
Mrs.  Aleshine  in  confidence  to  me,  "an'  she  said, 
'yes/  an7  we  ?re  goin'  to  do  it.  I  Ve  all  along  wanted 
to,  because  it  seemed  to  come  nat'ral,  considerin'  we 
knowed  ?ena  as  Emily  and  Lucille  before  we  set 
eyes  on  'em.  But  as  long  as  I  had  that  load  on 
my  mind  about  Mrs.  Leeks  and  Mr.  Dusante,  I 
could  n't i  Emily '  his  adopted  mother.  My  f eelin's 
would  n't  ha'  stood  it.  But  now  it  7s  all  right ;  an7 
though  Emily  is  n?t  the  woman  I  expected  her  to 
be,  Lucille  is  the  very  picter  of  what  I  thought  she 
was.  And  as  for  Emily,  I  never  knowed  a  nicer- 
mannered  lady,  an7  more  willin7  to  learn  from  peo 
ple  that 's  had  experience,  than  she  is." 

We  arrived  at  Meadowville  early  in  the  after 
noon,  and  when  our  party  alighted  from  the  train 
we  were  surprised  not  to  see  Mr.  Enderton  on  the 
platform  of  the  little  station.  Instead  of  him, 
there  stood  three  persons  whose  appearance  amazed 
and  delighted  us.  They  were  the  red-bearded  cox 
swain  and  the  two  sailor  men,  all  in  neat  new 
clothes  and  with  their  hands  raised  in  maritime 
salute. 

There  was  a  cry  of  joy.   Mrs.  Aleshine  dropped 


/ 1 8  The  Dm  antes. 

her  bag  and  umbrella,  and  rushed  towards  them 
with  outstretched  hands.  In  a  moment  Mrs. 
Leeks,  Ruth,  and  myself  joined  the  group,  and 
greeted  warmly  our  nautical  companions  of  the 
island. 

The  Dusante  party,  when  they  were  made  ac 
quainted  with  the  mariners,  were  almost  as  much 
delighted  as  we  were,  and  Mr.  Dusante  expressed 
in  cordial  words  his  pleasure  in  meeting  the  other 
members  of  the  party  to  whom  his  island  had 
given  refuge. 

"  I  am  so  glad  to  see  you,"  said  Mrs.  Aleshine, 
"  that  I  don't  know  my  bonnet  from  my  shoes ! 
But  how,  in  the  name  of  all  that 's  wonderful,  did 
you  git  here  ? " 

"'T  ain't  much  of  a  story,"  said  the  coxswain, 
"  an'  this  is  just  the  whole  of  it.  When  you  left 
us  at  'Frisco  we  felt  pretty  downsome,  an'  the 
more  that  way  because  we  could  n't  find  no  vessel 
that  we  cared  to  ship  on ;  an'  then  there  come  to 
town  the  agent  of  the  house  that  owned  our  brig, 
and  we  was  paid  off  for  our  last  v'yage.  Then, 
when  we  had  fitted  ourselves  out  with  new  togs, 
we  began  to  think  different  about  this  shippin'  on 
board  a  merchant  vessel,  an'  gittin'  cussed  at  an' 
livin'  on  hard-tack  an'  salt  prog,  an'  jus'  as  like  as 
not  the  ship  springin'  a  leak  an'  all  hands  pump- 


The  Ditsantes.  119 

in*  night  an'  day,  an'  goin'  to  Davy  Jones  after  all. 
An'  after  talkin'  this  all  over,  we  was  struck  hard 
on  the  weather  bow  with  a  feelin'  that  it  was 
a  blamed  sight  better  —  beggin'  your  pardon, 
ma'am  —  to  dig  garden-beds  in  nice  soft  dirt,  an' 
plant  peas,  an'  ketch  fish,  an'  all  that  kind  of 
shore  work,  an'  eatin'  them  good  things  you  used 
to  cook  for  us,  Mrs.  Aleshine,  and  dancin'  horn 
pipes  fur  ye,  an'  tamin'  birds  when  our  watch  was 
off.  Was  n't  that  so,  Jim  an'  Bill !  " 

"  Aye,  aye,  sir !  "  said  the  black-bearded  sailor 
men. 

"  Then  says  I,  '  Now  look  here,  mates,  don't  let 's 
go  and  lark  away  all  this  money,  but  take  it  an' 
make  a  land  trip  to  where  Mrs.  Aleshine  lives,' 
which  port  I  had  the  name  of  on  a  piece  of  paper 
which  you  give  me,  ma'am.'7 

And  here  Mrs.  Aleshine  nodded  vigorously,  not 
being  willing  to  interrupt  this  entrancing  story. 

" 4  An'  if  she  's  got  another  garden,  an'  wants  it 
dug  in,  an'  things  planted,  an'  fish  caught,  an'  any 
other  kind  of  shore  work  done,  why,  we  're  the 
men  for  her ;  an'  we  '11  sign  the  papers  for  as  long 
a  v'yage  as  she  likes,  an'  stick  by  her  in  fair 
weather  or  foul,  bein'  good  for  day  work  an'  night 
work,  an'  allus  ready  to  fall  in  when  she  passes 
the  word.'  Ain't  that  so,  Jim  and  Bill  ?" 


i2o  The  Dusantcs. 

"  Aye,  aye,  sir ! "  returned  the  sailor  men  with 
sonorous  earnestness. 

"  Upon  my  word !  n  cried  Mrs.  Aleshine,  tears  of 
joy  running  down  her  cheeks,  "  them  papers  shall 
be  signed  if  I  have  to  work  night  an'  day  to  find 
somethin'  for  you  to  do.  1 've  got  a  man  takin' 
keer  of  my  place  now ;  but  many  a  time  have  I 
said  to  myself  that,  if  I  had  anybody  I  could  trust 
to  do  the  work  right,  1 'd  buy  them  two  fields  of 
Squire  Ramsey's  an7  go  into  the  onion  business. 
An'  now  you  sailor  men  has  come  like  three  sea 
angels,  an'  if  it  suits  you  we  '11  go  into  the  onion 
business  on  sheers." 

"That  suits  us  tip-top,  ma'am,"  said  the  cox 
swain  ;  "  an'  we  '11  plant  inyans  for  ye  on  the 
shears,  on  the  stocks,  or  in  the  dry-dock.  It  don't 
make  no  dif'rence  to  us  where  you  have  'em ;  jes 
pass  the  word." 

"  Well,  well,"  said  Mrs.  Leeks,  "  I  don't  know 
how  that 's  goin'  to  work,  but  we  won't  talk  about 
it  now.  An'  so  you  came  straight  on  to  this 
place?" 

"  That  did  we,  ma'am,"  said  the  coxswain.  "An' 
when  we  got  here  we  found  the  parson,  but  none 
of  you  folks.  That  took  us  aback  a  little  at  fust, 
but  he  said  he  did  n't  live  here,  an'  you  was  comin' 
pretty  soon.  An'  so  we  took  lodgin's  at  the 


The  Diisantcs.  121 

tavern,  an'  for  three  days  we  7ve  been  down  here 
to  meet  every  train,  expectin'  you  might  be  on  it." 

Our  baggage  had  been  put  on  the  platform,  the 
train  had  moved  on,  and  we  had  stood  engrossed 
in  the  coxswain's  narrative,  but  now  I  thought  it 
necessary  to  make  a  move.  There  was  but  one 
small  vehicle  to  hire  at  the  station.  This  would 
hold  but  two  persons,  and  in  it  I  placed  Mrs.  Du- 
sante  and  Ruth,  the  first  being  not  accustomed  to 
walking,  and  the  latter  very  anxious  to  meet  her 
father.  I  ordered  the  man  to  drive  them  to  the 
inn,  which  was  about  a  mile  from  the  station, 
where  we  would  stay  until  Mrs.  Leeks  and  Mrs. 
Aleshine  should  get  their  houses  properly  aired 
and  ready  for  our  reception. 

"  Mrs.  Craig  will  be  glad  to  get  to  the  tavern 
and  see  her  father,"  said  Mrs.  Aleshine.  "I  ex 
pect  he  forgot  all  about  its  bein'  time  for  the 
train  to  come." 

"  Bless  you,  ma'am ! "  exclaimed  the  coxswain, 
"is  she  gone  to  the  tavern?  The  parson  's  not 
there ! " 

"  Where  is  he,  then  ? "  asked  Mrs.  Aleshine. 

"  He  's  at  your  house,  ma'am,"  replied  the  cox 
swain. 

"An'  what  in  the  name  of  common  sense  is 
he  doin'  at  my  house!"  exclaimed  Mrs.  Ale- 
11 


/22  The  Dusantes. 

shine,  her  eyes  sparkling  with  amazement  and 
indignation. 

"  Well,  ma'am,  for  one  thing,"  said  the  coxswain, 
"  he  ;s  had  the  front  door  painted." 

"  What ! "  cried  Mrs.  Leeks  and  Mrs.  Aleshine 
in  one  breath. 

"Yes/7  continued  the  coxswain $  "the  parson 
said  he  hated  to  see  men  hangin'  around  doin7 
nothin'.  An'  then  he  looked  about,  an'  said  the 
paint  was  all  wore  off  the  front  door,  an7  we  might 
as  well  go  to  work  an'  paint  that,  an7  he  sent  Jim 
to  a  shop  to  git  the  paint  an*  brushes " 

"An'  have  'em  charged  to  me  I"  cried  Mrs.  Ale- 
shine. 

"  Yes,  ma'am,"  continued  the  coxswain.  "An7 
Jim  an'  Bill  holy-stoned  all  the  old  paint  off  the 
door  an7 1  painted  it,  havin'  done  lots  of  that  sort  of 
thing  on  shipboard ;  an'  I  think  it  7s  a  pretty  good 
job,  ma'am  — red  at  top  and  bottom  an'  white  in 
the  middle,  like  a  steamer's  smoke-stack.'7 

Mrs.  Leeks  and  Mrs.  Aleshine  looked  at  each 
other.  "An;  he  told  you  to  do  that  ? 77  said  Mrs. 
Leeks. 

"  Yes,  ma'am,"  answered  the  coxswain.  "The 
parson  said  he  never  liked  to  be  nowhere  without 
doin7  what  good  he  could.  An7  there  was  some 
other  paintin7  he  talked  of  havin7  done,  but  we 


The  Dmantcs.  123 

ain't  got  at  it  yit.  I  s'posed  he  was  actin'  under 
your  orders,  an'  I  hope  I  have  n't  done  no  wrong, 
ma'am." 

"  You  're  not  a  bit  to  blame/'  said  Mrs.  Aleshine ; 
"  but  I  '11  look  into  this  thing.  No  fear  about  that ! 
An'  how  did  he  come  to  go  to  my  house?  An' 
how  did  he  get  in,  I  'd  like  to  know  f  " 

"All  I  know  about  that,"  said  the  coxswain,  "  is 
what  the  gal  that 's  livin'  there  told  me,  which  she 
did  along  of  askin'  us  if  we  was  comin'  to  live 
there  too,  an'  if  she  should  rig  up  beds  for  us 
somewhere  in  the  top-loft,  but  we  told  her  no,  not 
havin'  no  orders,  an'  payin'  our  own  way  at  the 
tavern.  She  said,  said  she,  that  the  parson  come 
there  an'  'lowed  he  was  a  friend  of  Mrs.  Aleshine's 
an'  travelin'  with  her,  an'  that  if  she  was  at  home 
she  would  n't  let  him  stay  at  no  tavern ;  an'  that 
knowin'  her  wishes  he  'd  come  right  there,  an' 
'spected  to  be  took  care  of  till  she  come.  She  said 
she  felt  oncertain  about  it,  but  she  tuck  him  in 
till  she  could  think  it  over,  an'  then  we  come  an' 
certified  that  he  was  the  parson  who  'd  been  along 
with  Mrs.  Aleshine  an'  the  rest  of  us.  Arter  that 
she  thought  it  was  all  right,  an',  beggin'  your  par 
don  if  we  was  wrong,  so  did  Jim  an'  Bill  an'  me, 
ma'am." 

"  Now,"  exclaimed  Mrs.  Aleshine,  "  if  that  is  n't 


124  The  Dusantes. 

exactly  like  Elizabeth  Grootenheimer!  To  think 
of  Elizabeth  Grootenheimer  thinkin' !  The  Groot- 
enheimers  always  was  the  dumbest  family  in 
the  township,  an'  Elizabeth  Grootenheimer  is  the 
dumbest  of  ?em  all !  I  did  say  to  myself  when  I 
went  away  :  '  Now,  Elizabeth  Grootenheimer  is  so 
stone  dumb  that  she  '11  jus'  stay  here  an'  do  the 
little  I  tell  her  to  do,  an7  has  n't  sense  enough  to 
git  into  no  mischief.'  An'  now,  look  at  her ! " 

She  waved  her  hand  in  the  direction  of  the 
invisible  Elizabeth  Grootenheimer. 

Mrs.Xecks  had  said  very  little  during  this  start 
ling  communication,  but  her  face  had  assumed  a 
stern  and  determined  expression.  Now  she  spoke. 

"  I  guess  we  Ve  heard  about  enough,  an'  we  'd 
better  be  steppin'  along  an'  see  what  else  Mr. 
Enderton  an7  Elizabeth  Grootenheimer  is  doin'. n 

The  homes  of  Mrs.  Leeks  and  Mrs.  Aleshine 
were  not  far  from  each  other,  and  were  situated 
about  midway  between  the  station  and  the  village 
inn,  and  in  the  direction  of  these  our  party  now 
started.  Mrs.  Aleshine,  contrary  to  her  custom, 
took  the  lead,  and  walked  away  with  strides  of 
unusual  length.  Mrs.  Leeks  was  close  behind 
her,  followed  by  the  two  Dusantes  and  myself, 
while  the  three  mariners,  who  insisted  upon  carry 
ing  all  the  hand -baggage,  brought  up  the  rear. 


The  Diisantes.  125 

We  stepped  quickly,  for  we  were  all  much  in 
terested  in  what  might  happen  next;  and  very 
soon  we  reached  Mrs.  Aleshine's  house.  It  was  a 
good-sized  and  pleasant-looking  dwelling,  painted 
white,  with  green  shutters  and  with  a  long  covered 
piazza  at  the  front.  Between  the  road  and  the 
house  was  a  neat  yard  with  grass  and  flower 
beds,  and  from  the  gate  of  the  picket-fence  in 
front  of  the  yard  a  brick-paved  path  led  up  to  the 
house. 

Our  approach  had  been  perceived,  for  on  the 
piazza,  in  front  of  the  gayly  painted  door,  stood 
Mr.  Enderton,  erect  and  with  a  bland  and  benig 
nant  smile  upon  his  face.  One  hand  was  stretched 
out  as  if  in  welcome,  and  with  the  other  he  grace 
fully  held  the  ginger- jar,  now  divested  of  its 
wrappings. 

At  this  sight  Mrs.  Leeks  and  Mrs.  Aleshine 
made  a  simultaneous  dash  at  the  gate,  but  it  was 
locked.  The  two  women  stamped  their  feet  in 
fury. 

"  Put  down  that  jar  ! "  shouted  Mrs.  Leeks. 

"  Elizabeth  Grootenheimer !  Elizabeth  Grooten- 
heimer ! "  screamed  Mrs.  Aleshine.  "  Come  here 
and  open  this  gate." 

"  Break  it  down  ! "  said  Mrs.  Leeks,  turning  to 
the  sailors. 


726  The  Dusantes. 

"  Don't  you  do  it ! n  exclaimed  Mrs.  Aleshine, 
throwing  herself  in  front  of  it.  "  Don't  you  break 
my  gate !  Elizabeth  Grootenheimer ! " 

"  My  friends/'  said  Mr.  Enderton  in  clear,  dis 
tinct  tones,  ube  calm.  I  have  the  key  of  that 
gate  in  my  pocket.  I  locked  it  because  I  feared 
that  on  your  first  arrival  you  would  hurry  up  to 
the  house  in  a  promiscuous  way,  and  give  heed 
to  irrelevant  matters.  I  wished  to  address  you  in 
a  body  and  in  a  position  where  your  attention 
would  not  be  diverted  from  me.  I  hold  here, 
my  friends,  the  receptacle  containing  the  money 
which,  under  a  misapprehension,  was  paid  for 
our  board  while  on  a  desert  island.  This  money 
I  have  taken  care  of,  and  have  carefully  guarded 
for  the  benefit  of  us  all.  Unfortunately  objec 
tions  have  arisen  to  this  guardianship,  which  were 
forwarded  to  me  by  telegraph,  but  I  have  not 
heeded  them.  If  you  cannot  see  for  yourselves 
the  propriety  of  my  assumption  of  this  trust,  I 
will  not  now  undertake  to  enlighten  you.  But  I 
hope  there  is  no  necessity  for  this,  for,  having  had 
time  to  give  the  matter  your  fullest  attention,  I 
doubt  not  that  you  entirely  agree  with  me.  I  will 
merely  add,  for  I  see  you  are  impatient,  that  the 
sum  which  will  fall  to  the  share  of  each  of  us  is 
comparatively  insignificant,  and  in  itself  not  worth 


The  Dusantes.  127 

striving  for ;  but  what  I  have  done  has  been  for 
the  sake  of  principle.  For  the  sake  of  principle  I 
have  insisted  that  this  money  should  be  received 
by  its  rightful  owners $  for  the  sake  of  principle 
I  assumed  the  custody  of  it ;  and  for  the  sake  of 
principle  I  shall  now  empty  the  contents  of  this 
jar  —  which  by  me  has  not  been  examined  or 
touched  —  upon  the  floor  of  this  piazza,  and  I  shall 
then  proceed  to  divide  said  contents  into  five  suit 
able  portions  —  the  three  mariners,  as  I  under 
stand,  having  paid  no  board.  The  gate  can  then 
be  opened,  and  each  one  can  come  forward  and 
take  the  portion  which  belongs  to  him  or  to  her. 
The  portion  of  my  daughter,  whom  I  saw  pass 
here  in  a  carriage,  going,  doubtless,  to  the  inn, 
will  be  taken  charge  of  by  myself." 

"  You  man  ! "  shrieked  Mrs.  Leeks,  shaking  her 
fist  over  the  fence,  ''  if  you  as  much  as  lift  that 
paper  of  fish-hooks  from  out  the  top  of  that  gin 
ger-jar,  I'll " 

Here  she  was  interrupted  by  the  loud,  clear  voice 
of  Mr.  Dusante,  who  called  out :  "  Sir,  I  require 
you  to  put  down  that  jar,  which  is  my  property." 

"I  '11  let  you  know,'7  said  Mrs.  Leeks,  "that 
other  people  have  principles  !  n 

But  what  more  she  said  was  drowned  by  the 
voice  of  Mrs.  Aleshine,  who  screamed  for  Eliza- 


128  The  Dusantes. 

beth  Grootenheimer,  and  who  was  now  so  much 
excited  that  she  was  actually  trying  to  break  open 
her  own  gate. 

I  called  out  to  Mr.  Enderton  not  to  make  trouble 
by  disturbing  the  contents  of  the  jar;  and  even 
Miss  Lucille,  who  was  intensely  amused  at  the 
scene,  could  be  heard  joining  her  voice  to  the 
general  clamor. 

But  the  threats  and  demands  of  our  united 
party  had  no  effect  upon  Mr.  Enderton.  He  stood 
up,  serene  and  bland,  fully  appreciating  the  ad 
vantage  of  having  the  key  of  the  gate's  padlock 
in  his  pocket  and  the  ginger-jar  in  his  hand. 

"  I  will  now  proceed,"  said  he.  But  at  that 
moment  his  attention  was  attracted  by  the  three 
mariners,  who  had  clambered  over  the  pointed 
pales  of  the  fence  and  who  now  appeared  on  the 
piazza,  Bill  to  the  right  hand  of  Mr.  Enderton,  Jim 
to  the  left,  and  the  red-bearded  coxswain  at  his 
back.  They  all  seemed  to  speak  at  once,  though 
what  they  said  we  could  not  hear,  nothing  but  a 
few  hoarse  mutterings  coming  down  to  us. 

But  in  consequence  of  what  Bill  said,  Mr.  En 
derton  handed  him  the  key  of  the  gate ;  and  in 
consequence  of  what  Jim  said,  Mr.  Enderton  de 
livered  to  him  the  ginger-jar;  and  in  consequence 
of  what  the  coxswain  said,  he  and  Mr.  Enderton 


The  Dusantes.  129 

walked  off  the  piazza ;  and  the  two  proceeded  to  a 
distant  corner  of  the  yard,  where  they  stood  out 
of  the  way,  as  it  were,  while  the  gate  was  opened. 
Bill  bungled  a  little,  but  the  padlock  was  soon  re 
moved,  and  we  all  hurried  through  the  gate  and 
up  to  the  piazza,  where  Jim  still  stood,  the  ginger- 
jar  held  reverently  in  his  hands. 

The  coxswain  now  left  Mr.  Enderton,  and  that 
gentleman  proceeded  to  the  open  gate,  through 
which  he  passed  into  the  road,  and  then  turned, 
and  in  a  loud  and  severe  tone  addressed  Mrs.  Ale- 
shine  : 

"  I  leave  your  inhospitable  house  and  go  to  join 
my  daughter  at  the  inn,  where  I  request  you  to 
send  my  valise  and  umbrella  as  soon  as  possible." 

Mrs.  Aleshine's  indignation  at  this  invasion  of 
her  home  and  this  trampling  on  her  right  to  open 
her  own  gate  had  entirely  driven  away  her  ac 
customed  geniality,  and  in  angry  tones  she  cried  : 

"  Jus'  you  stop  at  that  paint-shop  when  you  git 
to  the  village,  an7  pay  for  the  paint  you  had 
charged  to  me ;  an7  when  you  Ve  done  that  you 
can  send  for  your  things." 

"  Come,  now,  Barb'ry,"  said  Mrs.  Leeks,  "  don't 
let  your  feelin's  run  away  with  you.  You  ought 
to  be  thankful  that  he  ?s  let  you  off  so  easy,  an' 
that  he  ?s  gone." 


ijo  The  Dusantes. 

"I  'm  all  that/'  said  Mrs.  Aleshine;  "an'  ou 
second  thoughts,  every  whip-stitch  of  his  bag  and 
baggage  shall  be  trundled  after  him  as  soon  as  I 
kin  git  it  away." 

We  all  now  stood  upon  the  piazza,  and  Mrs.  Ale- 
shine,  in  calmer  tones,  but  with  her  face  still 
flushed  from  her  recent  excitement,  turned  to  us 
and  said :  "  Now,  is  n't  this  a  pretty  comin'  home  ? 
My  front  gate  fastened  in  my  very  face  ;  my  front 
door  painted  red  and  white;  the  inside  of  the 
house,  as  like  as  not,  turned  upside  down  by  that 
man  jus'  as  much  as  the  outside ;  an'  where  in  the 
world,  I  'd  like  to  know,  is  Elizabeth  Grooten- 
heimer ! " 

"  Now,  don't  you  be  too  hard  on  her,"  said  Mrs. 
Leeks,  "after  havin'  been  away  from  her  so 
long.  I  have  n't  a  doubt  she  's  feedin'  the  pigs ; 
and  you  know  very  well  she  never  would  leave 
them  as  long  as  she  felt  they  needed  her.  You 
need  n't  mind  if  your  house  is  upset,  for  none  of 
us  is  comin'  in,  havin'  only  intended  to  see  you  to 
your  door,  which  I  must  say  is  a  pretty  blazin' 
one." 

"And  now,  Mrs.  Leeks,"  said  Mr.  Dusante,  tak 
ing,  as  he  spoke,  the  ginger-jar  from  the  hand  of 
Jim,  "  I  think  this  is  a  suitable  opportunity  for  me 
to  accomplish  the  object  for  which  my  present 


The  Diisantes.  1 31 

journey  was  undertaken,  and  to  return  to  you  the 
contents  of  this  jar." 

"  Which/7  said  Mrs.  Leeks,  in  a  very  decided 
tone,  "  I  don't  take  now  no  more  'n  I  did  before.77 

Mr.  Dusante  looked  surprised  and  troubled. 
After  all  the  dangers  and  adventures  through 
which  that  ginger-jar  had  gone,  I  believe  that  he 
expected  Mrs.  Leeks  would  at  last  relent  and  con 
sent  to  accept  it  from  him. 

"Now,  look  here/7  said  Mrs.  Aleshine,  u don't 
let  us  have  any  more  fuss  about  the  ginger- jar, 
or  anything  else.  Let  's  put  off  talkin'  about  that 
till  we  're  all  settled  and  fixed.  It  won't  do  for 
you  to  take  the  jar  to  the  tavern  with  you,  Mr. 
Dusante,  for  like  as  not  Mr.  Enderton  will  git  hold 
of  it  ag'in,  an'  I  know  Mrs.  Leeks  won't  let  it  come 
into  her  house ;  so,  if  you  like,  you  may  jus'  leave 
it  here  for  the  present,  and  you  may  make  up  your 
minds  nobody  '11  touch  it  while  I  'm  about.  An' 
about  I  intend  to  be  ! " 

This  arrangement  was  gladly  agreed  upon,  and 
the  jar  being  delivered  to  Mrs.  Aleshine,  we  took 
our  leave  of  her. 

Mrs.  Leeks  found  no  difficulty  in  entering  her 
gate,  where  she  was  duly  welcomed  by  a  man  and 
his  wife  she  had  left  in  charge,  while  the  Dusantes 
and  myself  walked  on  to  the  inn,  or  "  Hotel,"  as 


132  The  Dusantes. 

its  sign  imported,  about  which  the  greater  part 
of  the  little  town  clustered.  The  three  mariners 
remained  behind  to  await  further  orders  from 
Mrs.  Aleshine. 

By  the  afternoon  of  the  next  day  the  abodes  of 
those  two  most  energetic  and  capable  housewives, 
Mrs.  Leeks  and  Mrs.  Aleshine,  were  fully  prepared 
for  the  reception  of  their  visitors,  and  the  Dusante 
family  were  ensconced  beneath  the  roof  of  the 
one,  while  my  wife  and  I  were  most  warmly  wel 
comed  at  the  gayly  adorned  door  of  the  other. 

Mr.  Enderton  remained  at  the  inn,  where  he 
found  very  comfortable  quarters,  an  arrangement 
satisfactory  to  all  parties. 

In  Mrs.  Aleshine's  dwelling,  where,  from  the 
very  first,  Lucille  took  her  position  as  a  most  con 
stant  visitor,  being  equally  welcomed  by  Ruth  and 
the  mistress  of  the  house,  all  was  satisfaction 
and  high  good  humor.  The  ceaseless  activity  and 
cheerful  spirits  of  our  hostess  seemed  to  animate 
us  all.  At  Mrs.  Lecks's  home  the  case  was  differ 
ent.  There,  I  could  plainly  see,  there  was  a  cer 
tain  uneasiness  amounting  almost  to  stiffness 
between  Mrs.  Leeks  and  Mr.  Dusante.  The  latter 
had  not  accomplished  the  purpose  for  which  he 
had  made  this  long  journey;  and  though,  if 
things  had  turned  out  as  he  wished,  he  would  have 


The  Dusantes. 

been  very  glad  to  be  the  guest  of  Mrs.  Leeks,  still, 
under  the  present  circumstances,  the  situation  did 
not  suit  him.  Mrs.  Leeks,  too,  possessed  an  un 
settled  mind.  She  did  not  know  when  Mr.  Du- 
sante  would  again  endeavor  to  force  back  upon 
her  the  board-money  in  the  ginger- jar,  and  in  this 
state  of  uneasy  expectancy  she  was  not  at  her 
best. 

"  He  7s  not  satisfied/7  said  she  to  me,  on  the 
morning  after  the  Dusantes  had  come  to  her  •  "  he 
wants  to  do  something  or  else  to  go  away.  I  wish 
that  ginger-jar  had  dropped  into  the  bottom  of  the 
sea  while  he  was  bringin'  it,  or  else  had  smashed 
itself  into  a  thousand  bits  while  he  was  slidin7 
down  the  mountain,  and  the  money  had  melted 
itself  into  the  snow.  S'posin7  at  the  end  of  the 
week  he  was  to  come  to  me  and  offer  to  pay  me 
board  for  himself  and  his  family,  sayin7  that  was 
no  more  than  I  M  done  to  him !  Of  course  the 
two  cases  are  not  a  bit  alike ;  for  we  went  to  his 
house  strangers,  without  leave  or  license,  while  he 
comes  to  mine  as  a  friend,  bein'  fully  invited  and 
pressed.  But  I  don't  suppose  I  could  make  him 
see  it  in  that  light,  and  it  worries  me." 

I  was  convinced  that  something  ought  to  be 
done  to  end  this  unpleasant  state  of  affairs,  and  I 
took  my  wife  and  Miss  Lucille  into  council  on  the 
12 


/  34  The  Dusantcs. 

subject.  After  we  had  deliberated  a  little  while 
an  idea  came  to  Ruth. 

"  In  my  opinion/7  said  she,  "  the  best  thing  we 
can  do  with  that  board-money  is  to  give  it  to  those 
three  sailors.  They  are  poor  and  will  be  glad  to 
get  it  j  Mr.  Dusante  and  Mrs.  Leeks  ought  to  be 
fully  satisfied,  for  the  one  does  n't  keep  it,  and 
the  other  does  n't  take  it  back,  and  1 7m  sure  that 
this  plan  will  please  all  the  rest  of  us." 

This  proposition  was  agreed  to  by  the  council, 
and  I  was  appointed  to  go  immediately  and  lay 
it  before  the  parties  interested. 

Mr.  Dusante  gave  his  ready  consent  to  this  pro 
posal.  "  It  is  not  what  I  intended  to  do,"  said  he, 
"  but  it  amounts  to  almost  the  same  thing.  The 
money  is  in  fact  restored  to  its  owners,  and  they 
agree  to  make  a  certain  disposition  of  it.  I  am 
satisfied.'7 

Mrs.  Leeks  hesitated  a  little.  "AH  right,'7  said 
she.  "  He  takes  the  money  and  gives  it  to  who  he 
chooses.  1 7ve  nothin'  to  say  against  it.77 

Of  course  no  opposition  to  the  plan  was  to  be 
expected  from  anybody  else,  except  Mr.  Ender- 
ton.  But  when  I  mentioned  it  to  him  I  found,  to 
my  surprise,  that  he  was  not  unwilling  to  agree  to 
it.  Half  closing  the  book  he  had  been  reading,  he 
said :  "  What  I  have  done  was  on  behalf  of  prin- 


The  Diisantes. 

ciple.  I  did  not  believe,  and  do  not  believe,  that 
upon  an  entirely  deserted  island  money  should  be 
paid  for  board.  I  paid  it  under  protest,  and  I  do 
not  withdraw  that  protest.  According  to  all  the 
laws  of  justice  and  hospitality  the  man  who  owned 
that  island  should  not  retain  that  money,  and 
Mrs.  Leeks  had  no  right  to  insist  upon  such  re 
tention.  But  if  it  is  proposed  to  give  the  sum  total 
to  three  mariners,  who  paid  no  board  and  to  whom 
the  gift  is  an  absolute  charity,  I  am  content.  To  be 
sure,  they  interfered  with  me  at  a  moment  when  I 
was  about  to  make  a  suitable  settlement  of  the 
matter,  but  I  have  no  doubt  they  were  told  to  do 
so ;  and  I  must  admit  that  while  they  carried  out 
their  orders  with  a  certain  firmness  characteristic 
of  persons  accustomed  to  unreasoning  obedience, 
they  treated  me  with  entire  respect.  If  equal  re 
spect  had  been  shown  to  me  at  the  beginning  of 
these  disputes,  it  would  have  been  much  better 
for  all  concerned." 

And  opening  his  book,  he  recommenced  his 
reading. 

That  afternoon  all  of  us,  except  Mr.  Enderton, 
assembled  on  Mrs.  Aleshine's  piazza  to  witness  the 
presentation  of  the  board- money.  The  three  sail 
ors,  who  had  been  informed  of  the  nature  of  the 
proceedings,  stood  in  line  on  the  second  step  of 


136  The  Dmantes. 

the  piazza,  clad  in  their  best  toggery,  and  with 
their  new  tarpaulin  hats  in  their  hands.  Mrs. 
Aleshine  went  into  the  house  and  soon  reappeared, 
carrying  the  ginger- jar,  which  she  presented  to 
Mr.  Dusante.  That  gentleman  took  it,  and  stood 
holding  it  for  a  moment  as  if  he  were  about  to 
speak ;  but  even  if  he  had  intended  to  say  anything 
he  had  no  further  opportunity,  for  Mrs.  Leeks  now 
stepped  forward  and  addressed  him : 

"Mr.  Dusante,"  said  she,  "from  what  I  have 
seen  of  you  myself  and  heard  tell  of  you  from 
others,  I  believe  you  are  a  man  who  tries  to  do 
his  duty,  as  he  sees  it,  with  a  single  heart  and  no 
turnin'  from  one  side  to  the  other.  You  made  up 
your  mind  that  you  ?d  travel  over  the  whole  world, 
if  it  had  to  be  done,  with  that  ginger-jar  and  the 
board-money  inside  of  it,  till  you  ?d  found  the 
people  who  'd  been  livin?  in  your  house ;  and  then 
that  you  'd  give  back  that  jar,  jus'  as  you  ;d  found 
it,  to  the  person  who  ?d  took  upon  herself  the  over- 
seein'  of  the  reg'lar  payin7  of  the  money,  and  the 
puttin'  of  it  therein.  With  that  purpose  in  your 
mind  you  carried  that  jar  over  the  ocean  ;  you 
wandered  with  it  up  and  down  California ;  and 
holdin7  it  tight  fast  in  your  arms,  you  slid  down 
the  slipperiest  mountain  that  was  ever  made  yet, 
I  believe,  and  if  it  had  been  your  only  infant  child, 


The  Diisantes. 

you  could  n't  have  held  it  firmer,  nor  regarded  it 
more  careful.  Through  ups  and  downs,  and  thicks 
and  smooths,  you  carried  that  jar  or  followed  it, 
and  for  the  sake  of  doin'  what  you  'd  set  your  mind 
on  you  came  all  the  way  to  this  place ;  to  which, 
if  it  had  n't  been  for  that  one  idea,  it  is  n't  likely 
you  'd  ever  dreamed  of  comin7.  Now,  Mr.  Du- 
sante,  we  've  all  agreed  on  what  we  think  is  the 
right  thing  to  do,  and  you  agreed  with  us,  but  I 
can  see  by  your  face  that  you  're  disapp'inted. 
The  thing  you  set  out  to  do  you  have  n't  done ; 
an'  I  'm  not  goin'  to  have  it  to  say  to  myself  that 
you  was  the  only  one  of  all  of  us  that  was  n't 
satisfied,  and  that  I  was  the  stumblin'-block  that 
stood  in  your  way.  So  I  '11  back  down  from  sayin' 
that  I  'd  never  touch  that  jar  again,  and  you  can 
put  it  into  my  hands,  as  you  set  out  to  do." 

Mr.  Dusante  made  no  answer,  but  stepped  for 
ward,  and  taking  Mrs.  Lecks's  large  brown  and 
work-worn  hand,  he  respectfully  touched  it  with  his 
lips.  It  is  not  probable  that  Mrs.  Lecks's  hand 
had  ever  before  been  kissed.  It  is  not  probable 
that  she  had  ever  seen  any  one  kiss  the  hand  of 
another.  But  the  hard  sense  and  keen  insight  of 
that  independent  country-woman  made  her  in 
stantly  aware  of  what  was  meant  by  that  old- 
fashioned  act  of  courteous  homage.  Her  tall  form 


138  The  Dmantes. 

grew  more  erect;  she  slightly  bowed  her  head; 
and  received  the  salute  with  a  quiet  dignity  which 
would  have  become  a  duchess. 

This  little  scene  touched  us  all,  and  Mrs.  Ale- 
shine  afterwards  informed  me  that  for  a  moment 
she  had  n't  a  dry  eye  in  her  head. 

Mr.  Dusante  now  handed  the  ginger-jar  to  Mrs. 
Leeks,  who  immediately  stepped  towards  Ruth 
and  Lucille. 

"  You  two  young  ones/'  she  said,  "  can  jus'  take 
this  jar,  an?  your  hands  can  be  the  first  to  lift  off 
that  paper  of  fish-hooks  and  take  out  the  money, 
which  you  will  then  divide  among  our  good 
friends,  these  sailor  men." 

Ruth  and  Lucille  immediately  sat  down  on  the 
floor  of  the  piazza  and  the  one  emptied  the  board- 
money  into  the  lap  of  the  other,  where  it  was 
speedily  divided  into  three  equal  portions,  one  of 
which  was  placed  in  the  hands  of  each  mariner. 

The  men  stood  motionless,  each  holding  his 
money  in  his  open  right  hand,  and  then  the  red- 
bearded  coxswain  spoke. 

"  It  ain't  for  me,  nor  for  Bill,  nor  for  Jim  nuther, 
to  say  a  word  agin  what  you  all  think  is  right  and 
square.  We  've  stood  by  ye  an'  obeyed  orders  since 
we  first  shipped  on  that  island,  an'  we  intend  to 
do  so  straight  along,  don't  we,  Jim  an'  Bill  ? " 


The  Dmantes. 

"  Aye,  aye,  sir  !  "  said  Jim  and  Bill,  in  hearty 
hoarse  response. 

"  There  's  some  of  ye,  'specially  Mrs.  Aleshine, 
though  meanin'  no  disrespec'  to  anybody  else,  that 
we  'd  foller  to  the  cross-trees  of  the  top-gallant 
mast  of  the  tallest  ship  that  ever  floated  in  the 
middle  of  the  ragin'est  typhoon  that  ever  blowed. 
Would  n't  we,  Jim  and  Bill  t " 

"  Aye,  aye,  sir !  "  sang  out  Jim  and  Bill. 

"  But  though  we  stand  ready  to  obey  orders," 
said  the  coxswain,  "  we  made  up  our  minds,  when 
we  heard  what  was  goin'  to  be  done,  that  we  'd 
listen  keerful  fer  one  thing,  an'  we  have  listened 
keerf  ul  an'  we  have  n't  heard  that  one  thing,  an' 
that  thing  was  what  we  should  do  with  this  money. 
An'  not  havin'  heard  it,  an'  so  bein'  under  no 
orders  as  to  the  spendin'  of  it,  we  take  the  money, 
an'  thank  you  kindly,  one  an  all.  Don't  we,  Jim 
and  Bin?" 

"  Aye,  aye,  sir ! "  said  Jim  and  Bill. 

And  into  the  pocket  of  each  mariner  clinked  the 
money. 

Mr.  Dusante  now  took  up  the  ginger-jar  and  ap 
proached  Mrs.  Leeks.  "  I  hope,  madam,"  he  said, 
"  that  as  the  subject  of  our  little  differences  has 
now  been  removed  from  this  jar,  you  will  consent 
to  accept  it  from  me  as  a  memento  of  the  some- 


140  The  Diisantes. 

what  remarkable  experiences  through  which  it  has 
accompanied  us." 

"  Take  it,  sir  ?  "  said  she.  "  To  be  sure  I  will. 
An7  very  glad  am  I  to  get  it.  As  long  as  I  live  it 
shall  stand  on  the  mantel-piece  in  my  parlor ;  an' 
when  I  die  it  shall  be  left  to  my  heirs,  to  be  taken 
care  of  as  long  as  it  holds  together." 

Every  reason  for  dissatisfaction  having  now 
been  banished  from  our  little  company,  we  all 
settled  down  for  a  season  of  enjoyment.  Even 
Mr.  Enderton,  who  had  found  on  the  top  shelf  of 
a  closet  in  his  room  a  lot  of  old  leather-bound 
books,  appeared  to  be  in  a  state  of  perfect  con 
tent.  To  the  Dusantes  a  residence  in  this  ab 
solutely  rural  portion  of  our  Middle  States  in  the 
autumnal  season  was  an  entirely  novel  experience. 
The  crisp  and  invigorating  air,  the  mists  and  the 
glowing  hues  of  the  Indian  summer  time,  the  soft 
ness  of  the  sunshine,  and  even  those  masses  of 
limbs  and  twigs  which  had  already  dropped  their 
leaves  and  spread  themselves  in  a  delicate  network 
against  the  clear  blue  sky,  were  all  full  of  a  novel 
beauty  for  these  people  who  had  lived  so  long  in 
tropical  lands  and  among  perennial  foliage,  and 
had  never  known  the  delights  of  an  American 
country  life  out  of  season.  Having  enjoyed  Mrs. 
Lecks's  hospitality  for  a  suitable  period,  they  pro- 


The  Dusantes.  141 

posed  to  that  sensible  woman  that  she  should 
receive  them  as  boarders  until  the  winter  should 
set  in ;  and  to  this  practical  proposition  she  gave  a 
ready  assent,  hoping  that  the  really  cold  weather 
would  long  defer  its  coming. 

Ruth  and  I  established  ourselves  on  the  same 
terms  with  Mrs.  Aleshine.  A  prolonged  holiday 
from  the  labors  of  my  business  had  been  the  ob 
ject  of  my  attempted  journey  to  Japan,  and  I  could 
think  of  no  place  where  it  would  better  please  my 
young  wife  and  myself  to  rest  for  a  time  than 
here  among  these  good  friends. 

A  continual  source  of  amusement  to  us  were  the 
acts  and  doings  of  Mrs.  Aleshine  and  her  three 
sailor  men.  These  bold  mariners  had  enlisted, 
soul  and  body,  into  the  service  of  the  thrifty  house 
wife;  and  as  it  was  impossible  to  do  anything  in 
connection  with  the  growing  of  the  onions  until  the 
desired  fields  should  be  acquired  and  the  spring 
should  open,  many  and  diverse  were  the  labors  at 
which  the  coxswain  and  those  two  able-bodied  sea 
men,  Bill  and  Jim,  set  themselves,  or  were  set  by 
Mrs.  Aleshine. 

The  brilliantly  painted  front-door,  which  at  first 
had  excited  the  good  woman's  ire,  gradually  came 
to  command  her  admiration ;  and  when  her  sailor 
men  had  done  everything  else  that  they  could  in 


142  The  Dus antes. 

the  barns,  the  fields,  or  at  the  wood-pile,  she  gave 
them  privilege  to  paint  various  portions  of  her 
property,  leaving  designs  and  colors  to  their  own 
taste  and  fancy.  Whether  they  milked  the  cows, 
cut  the  wood,  or  painted  the  sides  of  the  house, 
they  always  worked  like  good  fellows,  and  in  nau 
tical  costume.  They  holy-stoned  the  front  deck, 
as  they  called  the  floor  of  the  piazza,  until  it 
seemed  sacrilegious  to  set  foot  upon  it  ;  and  when 
the  house  and  the  pale-fence  had  been  suitably 
painted,  they  allowed  their  fancies  lofty  flights  in 
the  decoration  of  the  smaller  out-buildings  and 
various  objects  in  the  grounds.  One  of  the  men 
had  a  pocket-chart  of  the  colors  adopted  by  the 
different  steamship  companies  all  over  the  world, 
and  now  smoke-houses,  corn-cribs,  chicken-houses, 
and  so  on,  down  to  pumps  and  hitching-posts, 
were  painted  in  great  bands  of  blue-and-red  and 
white-and-black,  arranged  in  alternating  orders, 
until  an  observer  might  have  supposed  that  a 
commercial  navy  had  been  sunk  beneath  Mrs. 
Aleshine's  house-grounds,  leaving  nothing  but 
its  smoke-stacks  visible. 

The  greatest  work  of  decoration,  however,  was 
reserved  by  the  red-bearded  coxswain  for  himself, 
designed  by  his  own  brain,  and  executed  by  his  own 
hands.  This  was  the  tattooing  of  the  barn.  Around 


Tbe  Dusantes.  143 

this  building,  the  sides  of  which  were  already  of  a 
color  sufficiently  resembling  a  well-tanned  human 
skin,  the  coxswain  painted,  in  blue  spots  resem 
bling  tattooing,  an  immense  cable  passing  several 
times  about  the  structure,  a  sea-serpent  almost  as 
long  as  the  cable,  eight  anchors,  two  ships  under 
full  sail,  with  a  variety  of  cannons  and  flags  which 
filled  up  all  the  remaining  spaces.  This  great  work 
was  a  long  time  in  execution,  and  before  it  was 
half  finished  its  fame  had  spread  over  the  sur 
rounding  country. 

The  decoration  of  her  premises  was  greatly 
enjoyed  by  Mrs.  Aleshine.  "It  gives  'em  some- 
thin'  to  do,"  said  she,  "  till  the  onion-season  comes 
on ;  it  makes  'em  happy ;  an'  the  leaves  an7  flow 
ers  bein'  pretty  nigh  gone,  I  like  to  see  the  place 
blossomin'  out  as  if  it  was  a  cold- weather  garden." 

In  the  evenings,  in  the  large  kitchen,  the  sailor 
men  danced  their  hornpipes,  and  around  the  great 
fireplace  they  spun  long  yarns  of  haps  and  mis 
haps  on  distant  seas.  Mrs.  Aleshine  always,  and 
the  rest  of  us  often,  sat  by  the  fire  and  enjoyed 
these  nautical  recreations. 

"  Havin'  myself  done  housekeepin'  in  the  torrid 
zone,"  she  once  said,  "  a  lot  of  the  things  they  tell 
come  home  to  me  quite  nat'ral.  An'  I  'd  do  any 
thing  in  the  world  to  make  'em  content  to  live  on 


144  The  Dusantes. 

dryland  like  common  Christians,  instid  of  cavoort- 
in'  about  on  the  pitchin'  ocean,  runnin'  into  each 
other,  an'  springin'  leaks  with  no  likelihood  of 
findin'  a  furnished  island  at  every  p'int  where  their 
ship  happened  to  go  down." 

On  one  subject  only  did  any  trouble  now  come 
into  the  mind  of  Mrs.  Aleshine,  and  she  once  had 
a  little  talk  with  me  in  regard  to  it. 

"I've  been  af eared  from  the  very  beginning" 
she  said,  "  an'  after  a  while  I  more  'n  half  believed 
it,  that  Elizabeth  Grootenheimer  was  settin'  her 
cap  at  the  coxswain,  so  I  just  went  to  him  an7 1 
spoke  to  him  plain.  '  This  sort  o'  thing  won't  do 
at  all/  says  I ;  i  an'  although  I  have  n't  a  doubt 
you  see  it  for  yourself,  I  thought  it  my  dooty  to 
speak  my  mind  about  it.  There 's  plenty  of  young 
women  in  this  township  that  would  make  you 
sailor  men  fust-rate  wives,  an'  glad  enough  I  'd  be 
to  see  you  all  married  an'  settled  an'  gone  to  farm- 
in'  right  here  amongst  us,  but  Elizabeth  Grooten 
heimer  won't  do.  Settin'  aside  everythin'  else,  if 
there  was  to  be  any  children,  they  might  be  little 
coxswains,  but  they 'd  be  Grootenheimers  too ;  stone- 
dumb  Grootenheimers ;  an'  I  tell  you  plain  that 
this  county  can't  stand  no  more  Grootenheimers ! ' 
To  which  he  says,  says  he,  '  I  want  you  to  under- 
stan',  ma'am,  that  if  ever  me  or  Jim  or  Bill  makes 


The  Dusantes.  145 

up  our  mind  to  set  sail  for  any  sort  of  a  weddin' 
port,  we  won't  weigh  anchor  till  we've  got  our 
clearance  papers  from  you/  By  which  he  meant 
that  he  'd  ask  my  advice  about  courtin'.  An'  now 
my  mind  is  easy,  an'  I  can  look  ahead  with  com 
fort  to  onion-time." 

I  found  it  necessary  to  go  to  Philadelphia  for  a 
day  or  two  to  attend  to  some  business  matters ; 
and  the  evening  before  I  started,  the  coxswain 
came  to  me  and  asked  a  favor  for  himself  and 
his  mates. 

"  It  may  n't  have  passed  out  of  your  mind,  sir," 
said  he,  "  that  when  me  an7  Jim  an'  Bill  took  that 
money  that  you  all  give  us,  which  was  n't  zackly 
like  prize-money,  because  the  rest  of  the  crew,  to 
put  it  that  way,  did  n't  get  any,  we  listened  keer- 
ful  to  see  if  anything  was  said  as  to  what  we  was 
to  do  with  the  money ;  an'  nothin'  bein'  said,  we 
took  it,  an'  we  was  n't  long  makin?  up  our  minds 
as  to  what  we  was  goin'  to  do  with  it.  What  we 
wanted  to  do  was  to  put  up  some  sort  of  signal 
what  could  n't  get  blowed  away,  or,  more  like,  a 
kind  of  reg'lar  moniment  as  would  make  them 
that  looked  at  it  remember  the  rough  squalls  an' 
the  jolly  larks  we  've  gone  through  with  together, 
an'  it  was  when  we  was  talkin'  about  Mrs.  Leeks 
bein'  give'  the  ginger- jar  to  put  on  her  mantel- 
13 


The  Dusantes. 

piece  an7  keep  forever,  that  me  an'  Jim  an'  Bill  we 
said,  says  we,  that  Mrs.  Aleshine  should  have  a 
ginger-jar  too,  havin'  as  much  right  to  one  as  her 
mate,  an'  that  that  would  be  the  signal-flag  or  the 
moniment  that  we  'd  put  up.  Now,  sir,  as  you  're 
goin'  to  town,  we  ask  you  to  take  this  money, 
which  is  the  whole  lot  that  was  give'  us,  an'  have 
a  ginger- jar  built,  jus'  the  size  an'  shape  an' 
gen'ral  trim  of  that  other  one,  but  of  no  pottery- 
stuff,  for  you  kin  buy  em'  jus'  like  that,  an'  that 
ain't  what  we  want.  We  want  her  built  of  good 
oak,  stout  an7  strong,  with  live-oak  knees  inside  to 
keep  her  stiff  an'  save  her  from  bein'  stove  in,  in  case 
of  a  collision.  We  want  her  bottom  coppered  up 
above  the  water-line  with  real  silver,  an'  we  want 
a  turtle-back  deck  with  a  round  hatchway,  with 
a  tight-nttin'  hatch,  jus'  like  common  jars.  We 
want  her  sides  caulked  with  oakum,  an'  well 
scraped  an'  painted,  so  that  with  water  inside  of 
her  or  outside  of  her  she  won't  leak.  An'  on  the 
bottom  of  her,  so  they  kin  be  seen  if  she  keels 
over,  we  wants  the  names  of  me,  an'  Jim,  an'  Bill, 
which  we've  wrote  on  this  piece  of  paper.  An' 
on  her  sides,  below  the  water-line,  on  the  silver 
copperin'  we  want  the  names  of  all  the  rest  of 
you,  an'  the  latitood  an'  longitood  of  that  island, 
an'  anythin'  out  of  the  logs  that  might  'a'  been 


The  Dusantcs.  147 

kep'  by  any  of  you,  as  might  help  to  be  remem 
bered  the  things  what  happened.  An7  then,  if 
there's  any  room  left  on  the  copperin'  an'  any 
money  lef  to  pay  for  'era,  you  might  have  cut  on 
as  many  anchors,  an'  hearts,  an'  bits  of  cable,  an' 
such  like  suitable  things  as  would  fill  up.  An7 
that  jar  we  're  goin'  to  give  to  Mrs.  Aleshine  to 
put  on  her  mantel-piece,  to  stay  there  as  long  as 
she  lives,  or  anybody  that  belongs  to  her.  An', 
by  George,  sir ! "  he  added  behind  his  hand,  al 
though  there  was  nobody  to  hear,  "  if  ever  them 
two  jars  run  into  each  other,  it  won't  be  Mrs. 
Aleshine's  that  '11  go  down  ! " 

I  undertook  this  commission,  and  in  due  course  of 
time  there  came  to  the  village  the  most  astonishing 
ginger-jar  that  was  ever  built,  and  which  satisfied 
the  three  mariners  in  every  particular.  When  it 
was  presented  to  Mrs.  Aleshine,  her  admiration  of 
this  work  of  art,  her  delight  in  its  ownership,  and 
her  gratitude  to  the  donors  were  alike  boundless. 

"  However  could  I  have  had  the  idee,"  said  she 
privately  to  me,  "  that  any  one  of  them  noble  sailor 
men  could  have  brought  himself  down  to  marry 
Elizabeth  G-rootenheimer ! " 

It  was  not  long  after  this  happy  event  that  an 
other  great  joy  came  to  Mrs.  Aleshine.  Her  son 
returned  from  Japan.  He  had  heard  of  the  loss 


148  The  Dwantes. 

of  the  steamer  in  which  his  mother  and  Mrs.  Leeks 
had  set  sail,  and  was  in  great  trouble  of  mind  until 
he  received  a  letter  from  his  mother  which  brought 
him  speedily  home.  He  had  no  intention  of  set 
tling  in  Meadowville,  but  it  had  been  a  long  time 
since  he  had  seen  his  mother. 

He  was  a  fine  young  man,  handsome  and  well 
educated,  and  we  were  all  delighted  with  him ;  and 
in  a  very  short  time  he  and  Lucille  Dusante,  being 
the  only  young  bachelor  and  maiden  of  the  com 
pany,  became  so  intimate  and  super-friendly  that 
it  was  easy  to  see  that  to  Mrs.  Aleshine  might  come 
the  unexpected  rapture  of  eventually  being  the 
mother  of  Lucille. 

"We  staid  much  later  at  Meadowville  than  we  had 
expected.  Even  after  the  little  hills  and  vales  had 
been  well  covered  with  snow,  sleighing  and  coasting 
parties,  led  by  the  lively  new-comer,  offered  attrac 
tions,  especially  to  Lucille,  which  bound  us  to  the 
cheery  homes  of  Mrs.  Leeks  and  Mrs.  Aleshine.  But, 
after  a  time,  the  Dusantes  considered  it  prudent  to 
go  to  Florida  for  the  rest  of  the  winter ;  Mr.  Ender- 
ton  had  long  since  read  all  the  books  on  his  closet 
shelf  and  departed  for  New  York ;  and  Ruth  and  I 
determined  that  we,  too,  must  move  eastward. 

But,  before  our  little  company  separated,  Mrs. 
Aleshine's  son  and  Lucille  Dusante  had  settled  it 


The  Dusantes.  149 

between  them  that  when  the  spring-time  came  they 
would  set  sail  for  a  wedding  port.  This  match 
was  a  highly  satisfactory  one  to  all  concerned,  for 
Mr.  Dusante  could  scarcely  have  found  a  young 
brother-in-law  who  would  make  his  sister  so  happy, 
and  who  was,  at  the  same  time,  so  well  fitted  by 
disposition  and  previous  occupation  to  assist  in 
his  increasing  business  cares. 

In  the  spring  the  Dusante  family  came  North 
again  and  Lucille  and  her  lover  were  married; 
and  then  all  of  us,  except  Mr.  Enderton,  who  had 
obtained  a  most  congenial  position  as  assistant 
librarian  in  a  public  institution  seldom  visited, 
gathered  at  Meadowville  to  spend  a  week  or  two 
together  before  Ruth  and  I  repaired  to  the  New 
England  town  which  was  to  be  our  home;  and 
the  Dusante  family,  the  young  husband  included, 
set  out  on  a  tour,  partly  of  business  and  partly  of 
pleasure,  through  Canada  and  the  far  North-west. 

It  was  arranged  that,  whenever  it  should  be 
possible,  Lucille  and  Mrs.  Dusante  should  spend 
their  summers  at  Meadowville ;  and  as  this  would 
also  give  her  much  of  the  society  of  her  son,  the 
heart  of  Mrs.  Aleshine  could  ask  no  more. 

This  visit  to  Meadowville  was  in  the  onion- 
season  ;  and  one  morning  Ruth  and  I  sat  upon  a 
fence  and  watched  the  three  sailor  men  busily  at 


750  The  Dus  antes. 

work.  The  soil  looked  so  fine  and  smooth  that 
one  might  almost  have  supposed  that  it  had  been 
holy-stoned  5  and  the  three  nautical  farmers,  in 
their  tight-waisted,  loose-bottomed  trousers,  their 
tarpaulin  hats,  and  their  wide-collared  shirts,  were 
seated  on  the  ground  at  different  points,  engrossed 
in  the  absorbing  task  of  setting  out  young  onions 
as  onions  had  never  been  set  out  before.  All  the 
careful  attention  to  patient  minutiaB  which  nautical 
handiwork  had  taught  them  was  now  displayed 
in  their  new  vocation.  In  a  portion  of  the  field 
which  had  been  first  planted  the  onions  had 
sprouted,  and  we  could  see  evidences  of  astonish 
ing  designs.  Here  were  anchors  in  onions ;  hearts 
in  onions ;  brigs,  barks,  and  schooners  in  onions  ; 
and  more  things  pertaining  to  ships,  the  heart's 
affections,  and  the  raging  main  outlined  in  onions 
than  Ruth  and  I  could  give  names  to. 

"  It  seems  to  me,"  said  I,  "  that  there  must  have 
been  some  sort  of  enchantment  in  that  little  island 
in  the  Pacific,  for  in  one  way  or  another  it  has 
made  us  all  very  happy.77 

"  That  is  true,"  answered  Ruth  j  "  and,  do  you 
know,  I  believe  the  cause  of  a  great  part  of  that 
happiness  was  the  board-money  in  the  ginger-jar  ! " 

THE   END. 


14  DAY  USE 

RETURN  TO  DESK  FROM  WHICH  BORROWED 

LOAN  DEPT. 

This  book  is  due  on  the  last  date  stamped  below,  or 

on  the  date  to  which  renewed. 
Renewed  books  are  subject  to  immediate  recall. 


D'  

W    7-67  -12  M 

kOAN  DEPT 

JUN  3  0  2001 

LD  21A-GU 
(H241810)- 


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